Rivers State Governor Wike Sacks 344 Staff Of State Polytechnic

Rivers State Governor has been tagged the centre

of a soaring tension in Rivers state as his verdict

has left no fewer than 344 newly recruited staff,

including lecturers of the State Polytechnic, Bori

without jobs.

PM News earlier reported that Governor Wike may

likely layoff the 13,200 teachers employed by his

predecessor, Rotimi Ameachi after a resolution

passed on Tuesday by the State House of Assembly

gave him the right to do so. It was gathered that

Governor Wike may sack the teachers after the

board of the State Civil Service Commission was

accused of breaching rules and illegally employing

workers into the state service.

However, following the right issued to him (Wike),

344 newly recruited staff were shown the way out

of service after they fell into the category of

workers adjudged to have been wrongly employed,

Leadership reports.

Speaking with newsmen, the public relations officer

of the institution, Innocent Ogbonnaya Nwanwo ,

said the government also directed the Rector of

the polytechnic, Sir Obianko Worlu Elechi to proceed

on compulsory leave.

Nwanwo said the sack of the newly recruited

staff, as well as the directive on the Rector to

proceed on compulsory leave was contained in a

directive sent to the Polytechnic by the State

Ministry of Education.

He said, “The recent employment exercise we had

at the Rivers State Polytechnic, Bori has been

cancelled. The reason is that the government

needed to review the process of their employment.

The process that brought in the newly employed

people; don’t forget, they have not started work,

has been called off; it has been terminated by the

state government.

“Right now, they don’t have a job here in the

Rivers State Polytechnic. Technically speaking, that

is the truth. The Rector is on leave; he was asked

to proceed on leave.” The sack of the 344 newly

recruited staff comes days after Governor Wike

relieved the state’s Independent Electoral

Commission Chairman (RSIEC), Prof. Augustin

Ahiaozu, of his duties.