Over 4,000 workers who were employed by Abia State Local Government Service in 2019, but dismissed in January 2020 have cried out to Governor Okezie Ikpeazu to reinstate them and save them from hunger.
The workers who embarked on a street protest in Aba, stated that they were employed by the Commission in 2019, issued with appointment letters and identity card and were paid for 11 months until their salaries were stopped in January 2020.
Some of the placards displayed by the dismissed workers include; “Please don’t push us back to the streets; “We were employed and dumped since 2019”; “Please confirm all 2019 LG workers; “We were suspended when it was time to confirm our appointments; among others.”
The dismissed workers lamented that the State Local Government Service Commission recently released list of 250 newly employed council workers without their names.
Pointblanknews.com gathered that the state government had dismissed the over 4,000 workers after paying their salaries for 11 months over alleged abuse of the waiver for employment by the Chairman of the Commission, Chief Okezie Ugboaja.
It was further gathered that the State government had set up a committee by the Deputy Chief of Staff, office of the Deputy Governor, Chief Don Ubani to review the employment. However, nothing was heard from the Committee.
The Chief of Staff to the Governor, Dr. Anthony Agbazuere was said to have met the dismissed workers few months ago and appealed to them to exercise patience as the government looks into their plight.
But the dismissed workers were jolted when the Commission recently released a list containing 250 new workers, leaving out the over 4,000 dismissed workers.
Some of the workers alleged that they paid bribes ranging from N200, 000 to N250, 000 to some government officials and PDP stakeholders to secure the jobs, wondering why the government went for 250 new workers instead of reinstating them.
One of the dismissed workers, Okezie Njoku, who hails from Isiala Ngwa North LGA, said that after their employment in 2019, they were not paid for a year as the government indicated that their employment was under probation.
He said;”After one year, the salary started coming which lasted for 11 months and stopped again. Since January 2021, we’ve not been paid any money. They said they’ll look into it and get back to us. The Chief of staff to the Governor, Dr. Anthony Agbazuere called us and said they’re looking into our employment process saying that there were irregularities in the process that brought us in.
“This is after we’ve done all necessary things. We relaxed hoping to hear from them. To our greatest shock, the government started employing new LG workers who were not even part of the 2019 set that they told us they’ll look into our problem.
“We’re begging our Governor Dr Okezie Ikpeazu whom all of us here have been supporting to please hear our cries. In 2019, they assured us that if he wins the election, our employment will be confirmed and we all made moves to support his election, but today, we’ve been abandoned and most of us are dying of hunger and starvation.”
Another worker, Mgba Uzoma, said that they completed all processes from medical to the issuance of appointment letters and identity cards as council workers.
“We were issued appointment letters. We still have them till today. During the Covid-19 lockdown, they said people in our level should not be coming to work which was the only time we avoided the place of our works to obey the health rules. The last payment we got was November 2020. Throughout this 2021, we did not receive any salary and we’ve been going to work and thumb printing.
“We’ve tried to reach out to the government. The Chief of Staff to the Governor had a meeting with us and promised to look into our matter. However, just a few weeks ago, they released 250 names which they tagged newly employed workers with barely a few us there. We’re in the thousands. We now heard that our employment is over. We don’t understand. We’re begging the Governor to look into this case. We’re not strangers. Abia is our state. How can we be treated like this? Let the governor help us.”
The dismissed workers further appealed to traditional rulers and other stakeholders to urge the Governor to look into their plight and save them from hunger and starvation.
