No Plan Sack Workers Of Non-Abia Origin – Otti
Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has reassured workers in the state civil service that his administration has no intention of sacking anyone based on their place of origin.
He emphasised that every worker who contributes to the state’s development will be treated equally and without discrimination..
Otti stated this during a media chat on Friday in Umuahia.
He reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to enhancing the state civil service for optimal performance and productivity.
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The governor said, “I don’t know where that is coming from. There is nothing like mass retrenchment. We have not even thought about it. There’s nothing in the pipeline.
“Like I said, we don’t have any such plans. We will continue to ensure that our civil service is enhanced and productivity goes up, particularly now that before the end of every month they (civil servants) get paid, so there is no excuse for truancy anymore.”
He attributed the fear of retrenchment among workers to guilt stemming from poor work habits.
Otti therefore warned civil servants accustomed to absenteeism that truancy would no longer be tolerated under the present administration.
He added, “People who were used to not going to work, we told them to know that our administration does not tolerate truancy and so if they are afraid, maybe, they are guilty. There’s no mass retrenchment in the pipeline.”
While addressing the issue of disengaged workers in the state civil service due to non-indigeneship under former administrations in the state, Otti expressed his satisfaction that a number of those affected have been re-engaged.
He further revealed that his administration is currently reviewing the cases of the remaining few disengaged workers with the aim of reintegrating them into the state workforce.
He added, “As a person, I believe that people should not be judged or should not be treated fairly or unfairly based on where they come from. That is why in our administration, there are people who do not come from this state that have been given appointments.
“The reason is simple; once you live in Abia, you are from Abia, that is our own principle. You live here, you pay your tax here, you are involved in everything that we are doing, then we must treat you as part of us. This is a government that does not discriminate.
“As a policy, I treat people equally, even if you’re from the North and you live here. It is on that basis that I say anybody who was disengaged because of where they come from, we are looking at their cases.
“As we speak, we are looking at those few cases, they‘re not much. There is not much we can do about those who are not here with us (deceased) but those with us, we will look at their cases positively.”
Hafsoh Isiaq is a graduate of Linguistics. An avid writer committed to creative, high-quality research and news reportage. She has considerable experience in writing and reporting across a variety of platforms including print and online.
