Lawyer warns Ayade against retrenchment, fresh employment in Cross River

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Ntufam Mba Ekpezu Ukweni, has cautioned Cross River State Governor Ben Ayade against employing fresh workers and retrenchment of employees in the state as polling agents.

The governor threatened to sack some workers whom he did not authorise their employment and held meetings last week with leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to consider some of them for appointments.

Ukewni, who issued the warning while speaking with journalists, lamented the retrenchment of government workers, adding that the same government promised polling units agents employment and urged the governor to rescind his decision on downsizing the state’s workforce.

“Governor Ben Ayade in a meeting with politicians promised every polling unit agent an appointment when civil servants have not been paid for several months now.

“Yet people who have been employed as teachers, magistrates, and health workers have not been paid since they were engaged, yet he has promised polling units agent employment.

“You can imagine the number of polling units in the state, he saying there is no money, what sort of logic is that, it does not make sense to me and I think it is a major problem in the state,” he stated.

He said when e Governor Ayade appointed many commissioners in the state during his first term, “most of them did not have offices, but they were earning salaries and doing nothing. There were no offices for them, but at the end of the month they receive an alert. That is corruption and the Governor should not encourage it”

He, therefore, appealed to Ayade to recall the civil servants, magistrates, teachers, and health workers, as well as the others he allegedly sacked to work and pay them their wages.

“Most politicians may not be productive, as far as the economy is concerned, but the civil servants contribute better.