OVER 500 indigenes of Anambra State who were sacked by the Abia State government yesterday protested at the Government House, Awka, lamenting the death of their 19 former colleagues who were also disengaged.
The group carried placards with inscriptions such as “19 of us died out of frustration,” “Abia State rejected us, will our home reject us too?” “Why is nobody showing concern over our plight?” and “Our dynamic governor, please accept our files from Abia State.”
They were received by the Deputy Governor, Emeka Sibeudu, who later addressed the crowd comprising many women.
Earlier, the spokesperson, Mrs. Rose Okafor, a director in the Abia State civil service, said their condition had worsened, and they no longer had any means of livelihood.” The Abia State government served us the disengagement letter in September 2011, and by October 1, 2011 they stopped us from working in offices.
“We have not received salaries for eight months. Landlords have ejected us from our houses, we cannot pay our children’s school fees, nor be able to assist our families in any way,” Okafor lamented.
Also lamenting their plight, a Director, Secondary Education Management Board, Abia State, Chief Ikechukwu Muomah, recalled that the Anambra State government invited workers disengaged in Abia for verification at the office of the Head of Service in December last year, regretting that nothing had been heard since then.
He said: “We expected representatives of the Anambra State government to approach and dialogue with Governor Orji of Abia State for our reinstatement.”
Muomah appealed to Governor Obi for assistance for the disengaged Anambra indigenes, saying they were suffering untold hardship, while most of them were now refugees living in churches, and could not pay their children’s school fees.
The deputy governor, who received the group under a tree, said that the Obi administration was not treating the matter lightly, pointing out that there were others equally laid-off from other states.
He recalled that concerned citizens in the South East zone had approached this issue, adding that it was an inter-state affair, which was not easy to handle.
“The process is on. I want to assure you that in no distant time, government would address the matter,” Sibeudu said, adding that the state government was worried.
While assuring that their message would be relayed to the governor, he charged them to be patient, and commended them for conducting themselves in an orderly manner.
via Guardian: http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=86132:anambra-indigenes-protest-death-of-19-sacked-by-abia&catid=1:national&Itemid=559
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