Steve Oko, Umuahia
Member representing Aba South state constituency in the Abia State House of Assembly, Hon. Obinna Ichita, has called for the resignation of Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu if he could no longer pay salary of Abia workers.
The All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) Leader, also called for the sack of the Commissioner for Finance as well as the Accountant General of the state over the 12 months salary arrears owed the staff of Abia State Health Management Board.
The lawmaker argued that, “it is the primary responsibility of every responsible and responsive Government to take care of its workers’ welfare,” urging the Governor to simply throw in the towel if he felt overwhelmed by the demands of his office.
The call is coming in the wake of a protest by the affected staff who blocked the entrance to their premises, thus causing gridlock on the ever-busy Umuahia-Aba Road to press home their demands.
The opposition lawmaker is not alone on this as the Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, has also registered his displeasure over the plight of workers and pensioners in the state.
Senator Abaribe who spoke while addressing members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, at Bende, alleged that “Government was not owing because there was no money but because those in power pocket the money.”
Abaribe who is Ikpeazu’s kinsman condemned the Governor’s poor handling of workers’ welfare.
Meanwhile, the Chairman, Medical Health Workers Union of Nigeria, HMB, branch, Comrade Chidimma Mary Nwokoma, had during the protest, lamented: “we are going through hell; we are treated with so much wickedness and pain.”
She claimed that since the inception of Gov. Ikpeazu’s administration, “we must protest before we get one month salary despite the fact that our Governor’s mother retired as a health worker.”
The Labour Leader revealed that one of their female colleagues recently developed mental challenge out of frustration arising from economic hardship.
In a press release on Friday, Hon. Ichita lambasted the Ikpeazu-led administration, accusing it of handling workers’ welfare with levity.
According to him, the welfare of health workers should be a priority of every responsible Government considering their pivotal role to public health.
The statement made available to Ikengaonline read in part: “It is worrisome that such essential service providers are treated in such a despicable manner as described in the report in some national dailies, that they had to publicly protest in Umuahia, the Abia State capital.
“While Abians continue to suffer the failure of Abia state government to provide basic infrastructure for the people, we cannot ignore or tolerate the deliberate attempt by same government to indirectly sentence the citizens to death through non-payment of the salaries.
“Therefore, all men of good conscience must rise and demand immediate explanation from Abia State Government as to why workers in the HMB and indeed in other agencies and establishments in Abia State are being owned many months of salary arrears, even as the state receives revenue from a plethora of sources other than the statutory allocation from the federation account, details of which is in the public domain.
“Consequently, the Commissioner for Health, the Commissioner for Finance, as well as the Accountant General of Abia State should be relieved of their positions by the state Governor.
“This is because health workers are essential service providers, hence effort must be sustained at all times to ensure that the health of the citizens are not jeopardized in any manner, form or shape.
“That the salaries of these staffers have not been paid in the last 12 months is not only a demonstration of gross administrative ineptitude, it is a sin before God.”
The APGA Leader, also called on the Governor to throw in the towel if he felt overwhelmed by the responsibilities of his office.
“If the Governor of Abia State for any reason, is not willing and ready to do the needful by instilling sanity in the health sector in our dear state, then the Governor, his deputy and other political office holder, who watched in silence while this gross negligence and inhuman treatment of health care workers in Abia continued, should resign.
“But we know that they will not accept this honest advice, hence, the best thing is for the masses to force them out using our votes when the time comes,” Ichita said.
The lawmaker alleged that “Abia State has literarily abandoned its duty of protection of lives and properties and is fixated on the politics of 2023.”
Hon. Ichita urged Abians to use their votes wisely in the forthcoming 2023 polls to bring on board a responsive administration.
The Abia State chapter of the Nigeria Medical Association, NMA, had penultimate week, given Government a 14-day ultimatum to pay at least 80% of the salary arrears owed its members at the Abia State University Teaching Hospital Aba, ABSUTH.
This is as ambulance & hearse drivers as well as mortuary workers have threatened to embark on one month strike if Government revenue agents/taskforce did not stop the extortion of their members.
The drivers who staged a peaceful rally in Umuahia two weeks ago, alleged that the taskforce collect various monies ranging between N2000 to N10,000 from their members without any receipts.
