Thousands of aggrieved local government workers in Cross River State on Tuesday protested at the Federal Secretariat in Calabar, rejecting the state government's claim that 3,000 of them had been reinstated and describing the announcement as a "huge hoax".
The protesters, who also visited the Local Government Service Commission, demanded payment of their outstanding salaries, alleging that they had continued working in various local government departments, health centres and revenue units without pay for months.
Their protest followed a statement by Governor Bassey Otu, through his Chief Press Secretary, Linus Obogo, announcing that 3,000 workers had been reabsorbed and would be placed on the government payroll.
Speaking during the protest, the group's leader, Mr Julius Uchi, said none of the affected workers had been reinstated, insisting that the government's announcement was misleading.
"We were not among the people they claimed have been reabsorbed. That information is totally false," he said.
Uchi, who said he was employed in 2025 and posted to the Youth and Sports Department of Obudu Local Government Council, said the workers had yet to receive their salaries despite reporting for duty.
He said they learnt about the purported reinstatement through social media and had not seen any official government publication identifying those affected.
According to him, the workers had protested several times, prompting the setting up of a commission and a panel of inquiry before the government eventually issued a notice nullifying the recruitment exercise.
He, however, maintained that the affected workers were duly recruited, screened, cleared by their respective councils and the Local Government Service Commission, and captured by the Auditor-General before being deployed.
"When the governor talked about reinstatement, we didn't understand because nobody was removed from the payroll in the first place. Salaries have been paid to others, but we have received nothing," he said.
Uchi alleged that some of the affected workers were still serving in health centres and revenue-generating departments despite not being paid.
"None of us passed through the back door, and none of us paid anybody to secure employment. We were not illegally employed. The government has enjoyed our services. We want our pay," he added.
Receiving the protesters at his office, the Public Complaints Commission's Federal Commissioner for Cross River State, Dr Owa Egbara, commended them for their orderly conduct and said he had studied their petition.
Egbara said employment was a binding contract, arguing that workers who had commenced duty could not be arbitrarily denied the benefits of their engagement.
He warned that failure to follow due process could result in litigation, adding that the Ombudsman would intervene where necessary to protect the public interest.
The commissioner disclosed that the commission would write to the Head of Service and Chairman of the Local Government Service Commission to establish the status of the affected workers and the circumstances surrounding the alleged selective reinstatement.
"We have heard that some were treated as employed while others were abandoned. We need to know the reality and the basis on which this was done," he said.
Cross River LG workers reject Otu’s reinstatement claim, protest unpaid salaries