Reinstate us, or face legal action, 2,484 Benue sacked civil servants threaten govt

....say our employment follow due process

The 2,484 Benue civil servants who were sacked by Governor Hyacinth Alia in June  have written to the state government to demand their reinstatement within 30 days to avert a legal action. 

The aggrieved workers in a letter by their counsel, Mr. Samuel Irabor, to the Secretary to the State Government, SSG, with the caption, 'Notice of Demands and 30 Days Pre-Action Notice.' 

The workers stated that they were lawfully employed by the state government between December 2022 and March 2023 and were issued employment letters to that effect and they carried out their schedule of duties without hindrance or queries. 

The affected workers also demanded for the payment of their salaries and allowances, stressing that their employment followed due process. 

They expressed the hope that the Benue State Government would grant their demand for reinstatement and not let the matter drag to the courts. 

Part of the letter by the counsel read, "It is the complaint of our client that by a press statement on Wednesday, June 7, 2023 the Government of Benue State arbitrarily terminated their contract of employment for no cause even though their employment was considered, approved and authorized by the Benue State Executive Council which is the highest decision-making body of the Benue State Government. 

"Painfully, our clients are owed arrears of salaries and allowances from their various period of employment till the time of this notice. 

"Flowing from the above, we have our clients’ instruction to apply for their re-instatement and payment of their arrears of salaries and allowances through the facility of our law firm. In the event of non-conformity with the demands above, our clients issues this 30 days pre-action notice. 

"Take notice that at the expiration of the pre-action period, we have the instructions of our clients to initiate, and maintain till judgment, legal action to ventilate the above demands. . 

"It is our implicit trust that due process will prevail in the resolution of the issues herein laid out. We therefore believe that the Benue State Government will do the needful." 

It would be recalled that barely a week after Governor Alia took over, he sacked all civil servants who were employed between May 2022 and March 2023. He also reversed all promotions including those of permanent secretaries.