The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has condemned the sacking of certain category of Benue civil servants by Governor Hyacinth Alia describing it as unlawful, insensitive and callous.
The Governor in a statement on Wednesday by his Chief Press Secretary, Tersoo Kula, had among others directed the nullication of all employment made by the outgone administration since May 2022 as well as the reversal of promotions to the rank of Permanent Secretary made from January 2023 by that administration.
Briefing the media on the development in Makurdi, the acting State Chairman of the PDP, Mr. Isaac Mffo, noted that the action of the Governor was unacceptable as the affected civil servants were lawfully employed.
According to the acting Chairman, “the affected civil servants were given lawful appointments into the state civil service having fulfilled all statutory requirements and until this directive were entitled to all the rights, privileges and protections guaranteed them under the labour laws of the state.
“This is to say that loss of such rights, privileges and protections cannot be at the whim of anyone, no matter how highly placed, including the governor, but can only be for reasons prescribed under same laws, which do not include the action taken by Governor Alia.
“The insensitivity in the Benue State Governor’s action becomes more glaring when viewed against the backdrop of the untold hardship which Nigerians were subjected to under the recently expired Buhari regime in the forms of catastrophic economic mismanagement and the insecurity that directly threatened the country’s sovereignty.
“Governor Alia, being a direct offshoot of the cruel and visionless Buhari regime, should be threading cautiously as Governor of Benue State so as not to aggravate the pains and sufferings inflicted on the people of the state by that regime.
“Perhaps the Governor needs to be reminded that to the eleventh hour of his tenure, outgone President, Muhammadu Buhari made appointments into the federal civil service which President Tinubu has inherited and is working with.