On the 21st of September 2020, the city of Calabar experienced what had been long anticipated by many who are sympathetic with the sufferings of citizens of Cross River State whose names were unjustly removed from the Cross River State payroll
The streets of Calabar saw these pained and unjustly treated citizens protest against perceived injustice meted by the state government against over 2500 staff of the state civil service.
According to video footages and pictures of placard seen by our correspondent yesterday, these affected civil servants are protesting the delisting of their names from the state payroll. these civil servants have evidences that they were duly engaged by the state government but deprived their emoluments and other legitimate financial dues.
Some of the protesters who spoke with our correspondent noted averred as follows:
Nakanda Nakanda, informed that the affected civil servants were duly engaged six (2015), four(2017) and one (2019) years ago. Those engaged 6 and 4 years ago were given appointment, and confirmation letters and were payrolled but on September 2019 (another source says exactly 14 September) the Cross River State Government, CRSG, delisted over two thousand five hundred civil servants from the state payroll.
While Alorye Ushie another affected civil servant said there was job advertisement in newspapers according to which they were duly engaged. Again another affected Civil servant Naku Stephen Ayima a graduate of Economics said he has his '...letter of appointment, permanent appointment letter, confirmation letter and pay slip.'
The over 2,500 protesting civil servants delisted from the Cross River civil service said the protest will continue today till the injustice and illegal delisting of their names from the state payroll for over thirteen months is addressed.
This media House learnt that the matter has already been instituted at the industrial court. It is worthy to note that the illegal delisting affected over five hundred science and mathematics teachers, some legal officers etc and Six of those affected have already lost their lives while some are currently hospitalized for one ailment or the other.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, have not been forthcoming to defend their cause. The Head of Service in the state was said to have walk out on the protesters yesterday when they protested to his office at the New Secretariat.
But the state government is alleging that the these affected staff were not engaged illegally.
0 comments: