Sacked Abia workers protest non recall

Workers of Abia State Civil and Public Service sacked about three years ago for being non-natives held a peaceful protest in Aba on Thursday to press home their demand for full recall.
The protesters who wore black attires to depict their mood, displayed placards which read among other things “Call us back? Igbo is one”, “We need total recall, no discrimination”, “Sacking brothers and sisters is unjust, recall them now”. Security agents made fruitless efforts to stop the protesters from matching through the streets of Aba to the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) station located within the Ogbor Hill area, to lay their grievances. Police came with five Hilux vans to stop the protesting sacked workers, most of who were women at the Bata Junction, but they met some resistance from them  as they matched towards Waterside, where the police got reinforcement from the army who came
in two Hilux vans, and barricaded the road, stopping the demonstrators from getting to their destination.
However, as a result of persistent pressure, the protesters were allowed to match to NTA, but were prevented from entering the television station while the staff of the station, were prevented from relating with them.
However,  the protesters later marched down to a local radio station along Opobo road to voice their grievances.
The leader of the disengaged workers, Mr. Ugochukwu Unogu, a former teacher in a public school in Abia who hails from Imo State, debunked the insinuation in some quarters that most of them had been recalled saying that, “the recall was a charade.”
“The so called recall is a charade. It is not true. Only very few were re-instated. An insignificant number has been recalled but over 3,500 non-indigene workers have not been recalled.
“Our demand is that we should be recalled totally and not given selective recall, and the three years arrears owed us should be paid.
“We have functions to perform in our families. We have wives, children and aged parents who are dependent on us. For three years now, they have been suffering, and we have been suffering too,” Unogu said.
Another leader, Mrs Ijeoma Iheakirika, teacher at the Railway Hall Primary School said that the group supported the Human Rights suit in their favour at the Enugu Industrial Court.
She however said that as the matter progressed in their favour and at the point of ruling, they were asked to go home and return with their names.
“On getting home, we heard around November 25, 2013 that we should write letters of re-instatement which we did at Umuahia.
“But after that we found that only 2 percent of us were re-instated to disorganize us. You can see majority of us here. If we have been reinstated, we would not be here.
“We want Abia State Government to look into our case, re-instate and pay us our arrears. We have not done anything wrong. We want the federal government to help us plead, so that the state government whom we have served will settle us.
Mrs Adaku Nnabugwu, a teacher at Eziama Community Primary School said they were disengaged since September 2010, adding that they have heard that some have been recalled, while some were yet to be recalled.
“Many who are supposed to be here today are sick, and many have died because of this fate. We want the NUT, Senators, the NLC and House of Reps,” and all stakeholders to help us” she said.
A civil rights activist, Mr. Chukwuemeka Mba of the Centre for Youth Care and Human Rights, said that they are involved because the displacement of the workers had affected many youths.
He said that many of the children of the affected workers have been thrown out of school and are starving hence the need for the centre to seek government’s attention on their matter.
He called on the federal government to intervene and recall the workers adding that being Nigerians they have no need to suffer such an unjust fate.