Member representing Aba South Constituency in Abia State House of Assembly, Hon. Obinna Ichita has called for immediate sack of the Commissioner for Health in the state, Dr Joe Osuji, his Finance counterpart Dr. Aham Uko and the Accountant General of the state over backlog of salaries owed to staff of Abia State Hospital Management Board.
This he said has led to protest by the staff, describing the non-payment of their salaries dating back to 12 months now as worrisome.
While insisting that this is too heavy to be ignored, the APGA chieftain said health is an essential service, warning that the workers in the sector should not be treated in a despicable manner that has made headline in the news media.
In a statement on Friday which he personally endorsed, the lawmaker also advised the state governor, Okezie Ikpeazu to resign, accusing him of being engrossed with the 2023 election while governance suffers.
He said, “It is worrisome that such essential service providers are treated in such a despicable manner as described in the report in some national dailies, that they had to publicly protest in Umuahia, the Abia State capital.
“While Abians continue to suffer the failure of Abia state government to provide basic infrastructure for the people, we can not ignore and/ or tolerate the deliberate attempt by same government to indirectly sentence the citizens to death through non payment of the salaries.
“I strongly agree with the majority of our people, who maintain that non-payment of salaries to any worker is against the biblical injunction that “…a worker deserves his wages” ( Mathew 10 Vs 10).
“Therefore, all men of good conscience must rise and demand immediate explanation from Abia state government as to why workers in the health management board and indeed in other agencies and establishments in Abia state are being owned many months of salary arrears, even as the state receives revenue from a plethora of source other than the statutory allocation from the federation account, details of which is in the Public domain.
“Consequently, the Commissioner for health, the commissioner for finance as well as the accountant general of Abia State should be relieved of their positions by the state Governor.
“This is because health workers are essential service providers, hence effort must be sustained at all times to ensure that the health of the citizens are not jeopardized in any manner form or shape. It follows that the condition of service of essential workers should always receive priority attention from any responsible government.”
According to Hon. Ichita, the state government has demonstrated ineptitude by its failure to pay the staff of the State Hospital Management Board in the last 12 months.
He accused the governor, Okezie Ikpeazu of not being willing to do the needful and instill sanity in the health sector for the over all health of Abians.
He therefore called on the people of the state to vote out the government of PDP in the upcoming election for its inability to provide governance.
“That the salaries of these staffers have not been paid in the last 12 months is not only a demonstration of gross administrative ineptitude, it is a sin before God.
“If the Governor of Abia State for any reason, is not willing and ready to do the needful by instilling sanity in the health sector in our dear state, then the Governor, his deputy and other political office holder, who watched in silence while this gross negligence and inhuman treatment of health care workers in Abia continued, should resign.
“But we know that like all known oppressors recorded in history, they will not accept this honest advice, the best thing is for the masses to force them out using our votes when the time comes. The people of Abia state must take back our state
“The government of Abia state has literarily abandoned its duty pf protection of lives and properties but is fixated on the politics of 2023.
“The 2023 election in Abia will be a referendum: The people will make a choice: Bad governance vs Good governance.”
