From Charles Otu
A Non-Governmental Organization, NGO, Ebonyi Advocacy for Transparency Initiative has accused the government of Ebonyi State of massive corrupt practices and of grossly neglecting the welfare of workers.
The group, in a media briefing to mark this year’s Democracy Day, challenged the Governor of the State, Engr. David Umahi to a public debate on his administration’s policies and programmes.
In a release signed by its’ Coordinator, Comrade Jude Okpor, the group said the government violated the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by its amendment of the State’s Direct Labour law which empowers it to execute projects worth more than N1.5 billion.
“We had raised some eyebrows about the hurried amendment of the Ebonyi State Public Procurement and Related Matters (Amendment) LAW NO. 012 of 2009 to LAW NO. 008 of 2016, otherwise referred to as Direct Labour Committee Law by the State’s House of Assembly which specifically in Section 24C (1) empowered the Governor to determine such jobs as may, in any case, not exceeding the sum of One Billion, Five Hundred Million Naira, (N1, 500, 000, 000).
“The above, we had noted, is inconsistent with the procurement laws of the country that provides for jobs not exceeding N10 Million only to be executed via this method. Like the rest of Ebonyi people who have been made to believe that this step was meant to save cost for the government and the people, this forum had specifically asked: How much exactly have been saved by the government through this use of direct labours by the Umahi-led administration?”, the group queried .
The group further accused the government of totally neglecting the education sector which it said has led to massive withdrawal of students from public schools by parents and guardians as a result of poor teaching and learning conditions.
It said: “In the education sector, the Governor may have forgotten all he had promised Ebonyians in pages 22, 23, 24 and 25 respectively on the same inaugural address wherein he had avowed: “We support the policy of the past administration to return some of our Primary and Secondary schools to their original owners who are the missionaries… In our campaign, we did promise to bring down fees in our higher educational institutions and remove the dichotomy in the fees paid by Ebonyians and non-Ebonyians. Our administration will keep our promises and will invite the managers of our higher institutions to discuss with us in support of our promise to our people. The infrastructures in our schools do not support qualitative education… It is manifestly clear to all that the Governor has not impacted this critical sector positively as the many parents have already withdrawn their wards and children from the pilot schools which he had promised upon inauguration would be 100% boarding”.
The group continued, that, for instance, in the Governor’s Alma-mater, Government Secondary School Afikpo, there has been a drastic drop in the number of boarding students from about over 2000 students in 2014/2015 to a little above 1000 in 2017/2018.
“Similarly in St. Adians Secondary School, Umuezoka, one of the pilot Schools originally meant for boys have been converted into a day students school for boys and girls and the number of boarding students has drastically dropped from above 300 between the 2014/2015 academic session to a little above 40 in 2018. This ugly development we gathered was a face-saving measure aimed at remedying the total withdrawal of students from the school. These abysmal situations are attributed to the present administration’s abandonment of the education sector, lack of funding, increment in tuition from N5000 to N15000 and inability of the government to design a workable policy framework for this very important sector”, the group stressed.
They further alleged that: “The education sector is in such a terrible shamble that students now contribute money for chalk in our public schools while those in boarding have no facilities to help in effective teaching and learning. As a matter of fact, students in pilot schools buy their own sachet water from homes due to lack of portable drinkable water while they use the ‘shot-put’ method in defecating. We challenge the Governor to please make time to pay an unannounced visit to Model Comprehensive Girls Secondary School, Ugwuachara to see things for himself.”
The group also accused the government of abandoning its promises to Ebonyi workers upon inauguration on May 29, 2015.
“As rightly noted by the former Secretary to the Ebonyi State Government, revered Prof. Bernard Odoh in his resignation letter, civil service in Ebonyi under Umahi is really at its lowest ebb. Their welfare, which Umahi promised on page 40 of his inaugural address that: “There should not be a wide discrepancy between the welfare of our politicians and that of our civil servants… Let me assure them that we shall not disappoint them. One of the key things our administration shall do is to always sit down and discuss with all concerned stakeholders…” the group alleged, has been neglected.
The statement continued: “It is no longer news that the civil servants in Ebonyi have been given the shortest end of the stick by the Umahi-administration with workers not even knowing what is their exact salary. As many have yelled: It is as Umahi so pleases at the end of every month. Right from inception, Ebonyi workers have been so traumatized with the cut in the 50% increment which Elechi had paid them for some few months before his exit which was stopped by Gov. Umahi and the lack of promotion and its accompanying benefits to them like arrears that they have totally resigned to fate.”
The group added that: “Similarly, Pensioners and retirees have also been so disdainfully treated by the present administration that they recently decided to call on the Almighty God Himself to intervene in their plight as they held a prayer summit to report the Umahi government which they have accused of paying them only 20% of their due retirement benefit while posturing in the media that they have been paid and that the government is the first to pay retirees since the creation of the State.”
Meanwhile, the group, while commending the governor for his urban renewal programme that has transformed the Abakaliki capital city, alleged that there were plans by the government to sell off government-owned properties across the federation.
“It has come to our notice that evaluations of government-owned properties such as the Ebonyi Hotels Ltd, Ebonyi Pipe Production factory, Ebonyi Five Star hotels and Ebonyi liaison offices in Enugu, Aba and Lagos among numerous others are currently ongoing. It seems to this forum, just like many Ebonyians that sequel to the level of impoverishment of Ebonyi people by the present administration, the only people who may have the financial capacity to acquire these properties are the Umahis, it stated.
Contrary to the positions of the group, however, Governor Umahi had in his Democracy Day media briefing praised his administration’s efforts in providing the people with good governance and massive infrastructural development within his three years in office in the State.
