Samuel Marshallwith
additional reports byBeauty David Nteugot
An aggrieved group of persons excluded from the batch of 2023 employees into academic and non-academic staff positions in the Captain Elechi Amadi Polytechnic, Rivers State, took their vexation to the entrance of Government House, Port Harcourt on Monday 22nd April 2024. Numbering about 56, they chanted “All we are saying, give us our jobs!”. Some held placards that read, “Governor, please, save our employment at Elechi Amadi Polytechnic”, and “Why the exclusion from employment already merited?”
Spokesman of the group, Dr. Dumnamene Fiito, expressed sadness at what he called the polytechnic’s failure to employ them despite their successes at the institution’s job interview and their subsequent receipt of employment letters.
He lamented that, whereas the school authorities had declared the employment to be coming in two batches, they ended up with just one, which left out he and his counterparts. The excuse being that the second list is yet to be approved by Governor Sim Fubara. He thereby appealed to the governor to direct the school’s management to give his group their due employment.
Another member of the group, Mr. Precious Amadi, with a sense of injury, said, “the situation is unacceptable – where applicants who started with us have so far received 2 months’ salaries and are waiting for the 3rd, yet the second list is not forthcoming”.
Also stating the grievance, Mrs. Blessing Lawrence Owhonda said, “many were sent text messages to come and submit account numbers and Bank Verification Numbers to the ICT office; but few actually received the jobs, with the excuse that the process is divided into two batches, A and B, that batch B will be employed later”.
Words about the protest reached the Head of Service, Dr. George Nwaeke, who promptly came out of the government house gate to address the group.
He expressed sincere appreciation to the protesters for their peaceful conduct, and made plain to them that, “last year, approval was given to the Elechi Amadi Polytechnic to employ a certain number of new staff; but the authorities went on their own to employ more than that number”, explaining to the protesters that, “the state government is not aware of your employment”.
He, however, gave the reassurance that with Governor Fubara, the hope of Rivers people are in good hands. He urged the group to “calm down”, that “as time goes on, other opportunities will come”.
When contacted the school authorities declined comment noting that they will respond at an appropriate time.***
