Oni Asks Ekiti Government To Obey Court Judgment, Reinstate Dismissed Workers

By Ayodele Oni

The Governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Chief Segun Oni, has called for the immediate reinstatement of  sacked workers of the Ekiti State University (EKSU), relieved of their positions by Governor Kayode Fayemi administration in 2019.

Recall that the Management of the EKSU had, on December 5, 2019, disengaged over 900 of its workforce for alleged certificate forgery, irregular appointment, over-age among other sundry allegations.

The disengaged EKSU staff, subsequently, dragged the University authorities to the National Industrial Court (NIC) in Akure, got a judgment nullifying their sack, but the Government has refused to obey the Court judgment.

However, some of the workers headed to the Appeal Court sitting in Ado Ekiti and, in its judgment recently, it ordered the reinstatement of the disengaged staff.

Giving the judgement, Justice Tunde Awotoye, also gave the University a 30-day ultimatum to pay the reinstated workers their salaries, emoluments, and allowances from the date of their unlawful disengagement to date.

The court also directed the University to pay the workers the three months salary they were being owed before they unlawfully disengaged them.

Speaking yesterday on the development through his Director of Media and Publicity, Segun Oni Campaign Organization, Mr. Jackson Adebayo,  Oni said that the Government should obey the judgment of the court and immediately reinstate the workers.

He noted that a Government that prides itself as democratic should be guided by the rule of law and not disobey the judgment of a court of law.

Oni said that the workers have been subjected to an untold hardship with their families who bear the consequence of unjust action of Government.

Oni who said that Government was a continuum, wondered why the workers, employed by the former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administrations, should be laid off by Governor Fayemi, for no other reasons but politics.

The SDP Governorship candidate, therefore, assured workers in the State that none of them would suffer unjustly if he becomes the governor of the state.