The reason for the abrupt sack of Imo State Commissioner for Labour and Productivity, Mr. Ford Ozumba, by the State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, has been made known.
He is said to have been removed from office with immediate effect as a result of his alleged interference in the election of the state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
Details of what he did in this regard to anger the Governor are not yet clear, but the NLC gave directives for a strike action which the workers in the state embarked upon from Wednesday, March 8.
The Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, that serves the state has since Thursday complied with the directive, shutting off power supply, and as a result, individuals and businesses have been groaning, with the hospitality sector worst hit.
The dismissal of Ozumba, a former Managing Director of Statesman, the state-owned newspaper, has been confirmed by both the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Declan Emelumba and the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Oguike Nwachukwu, who stressed that the governor also directed Chief Ozumba to hand over to the Permanent Secretary at the ministry with immediate effect.
Meanwhile, hoteliers in the state on Saturday urged the state government and the state’s chapter of the NLC to settle their differences to save the tourism industry from collapse.
The face-off has led to total blackout in Owerri since Thursday as it grounded the operations of the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, which feeds power to Imo.
The blackout has consequently put the hoteliers at risk as patronage has ebbed.
Chairman of the Imo chapter of the Nigerian Hoteliers Association, Mr. Chima Chukwunyere, told newsmen in Owerri on Saturday that the effect of the face-off on the tourism industry was becoming untoward.
He called on the warring parties to immediately sheathe their swords and save the industry before it became late.
According to him, the high cost of diesel and on-going cash crunch were enough challenges for the industry which continued to battle with multiple taxation in a dwindling economy.
He described the tourism industry as the second highest employer of labour in Imo and called on the parties to quickly resolve their differences in the interest of the state and her economy.
“The misunderstanding between the state government and the NLC in the state has dealt a devastating blow on the tourism industry.
“As the saying goes, where two elephants fight, the grass suffers and the grass here is the hotel industry.
“More than 80 per cent of hotels are on the brink of collapse. They have neither been able to pay staff salaries nor have they met other expenses since December 2022.
“Right now about 70 per cent of hotel owners in the state are asking people to leave their hotels because they want to relocate their businesses to either Asaba or to Ghana.
“It is such a worrisome situation and whatever is the problem between the warring parties should be sorted out quickly,’’ Chukwunyere pleaded.
