Abia: Dismissed LG Workers Storm NUJ Secretariat

By Uche Mbah

Dismissed Local Government workers of Abia state have stormed the secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalist in Aba, Abia state, to beg Governor Okezie Ikpeazu for reinstatement.

The workers were employed by Abia State government in 2019, but dismissed in January 2020.

The workers, in their hundreds, stormed the secretariat of the Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ, Aba, with placards with different inscriptions on them.“Please don’t push us back to the streets, “please confirm all 2019 LG workers, “we were suspended when it was time to confirm our appointments.”

According to them, they became alarmed when the State Local Government Service Commission released a list of 250 newly employed council workers without their names.

Their spokesperson, Okezie Njoku, said that they were employed on probation but never received any salary.

“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 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.”