By ERICJAMES OCHIGBO

Some federal civil servants allegedly dismissed illegally from the Federal Ministries of Environment and Works, have appealed to President Bola Tinubu and the leadership of the National Assembly to intervene in their prolonged battle for reinstatement.

They also called on Civil Society Organisations (CSO), labour unions and well-meaning Nigerians to prevail on Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC) to implement a Senate resolution directing their recall and deployment to their former ministries.

Addressing newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday, Mrs Joy Eseoghene, one of the victims, said that she and her other colleagues had faced untold hardship after their dismissal in 2022 over alleged irregularities in their employment process.

She said that meeting basic needs of life like food, rent, school fees and medical bills, among others had forced them to sell their personal property to stay alive.

“We have gone through the right channels to seek justice; the National Assembly has investigated the matter and both the Ninth and the current 10th Assembles have ruled in our favour.

“Yet, in spite of so many letters and correspondence from superior authorities, the commission has blatantly refused to obey the ruling of the National Assembly and other superior authorities on our reinstatement.

“We do not know where else to go anymore, if the commission, a product of an Act of Parliament, cannot respect the National Assembly, that means it is now bigger than Nigeria

“This illegal termination has caused us so much pains and hardship. We are calling on President Bola Tinubu to intervene in this matter and give us a renewed hope.

“We call on the uncommon Senate President, Sen. Godswill Akpabio, to defend the authority of the senate and not allow anyone to undermine the institution under his watch.

“We urge all well-meaning Nigerians to please come to our help. We are Nigerians and we deserve to earn a living,” she said.

Eseoghene said that the senate in its Dec. 10, 2025 Votes and Proceeding, resolved that the commission should reinstate the eight affected civil servants and post them back to their respective ministries to resume work.

She said that in the resolution, the senate asked the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) to ensure the reinstatement and the posting of the officers to their respective ministries to resume work.

According to her, the affected officers include Dangla Bitrus; Attahiru Enagi, Patrick Ikechukwu, Ukueku Oghenetega, Opara Adaoma, Opara Chukwuemeka, and Oloriegbe Inamud.

Eseoghene said that the resolution followed the consideration of a petition to the senate by Throneroom Attorneys, on behalf of affected officers on March 13, 2024.

She stated that the investigation conducted by the senate showed that they were duly employed by the FCSC, with duly signed appointment letters by the Director of Recruitment and Appointment at FCSC.

“The outcome of the investigation also showed that our names were published on the official gazette, and that we sat for the compulsory 2020/2022 Confirmation/Promotion Examination (COMPRO) conducted by OHCSF.

“The senate, in its resolution, urged the FCSC and the Office of the OHCSF to reinstate all the eight dismissed officers and post them back to their respective ministries to resume work,” she said.

She also added that the senate directed the FCSC Chairman to unfreeze all the salary accounts of all the officers and pay their arrears of salaries and entitlements from the date of their dismissal till date.

Eseoghene further said that the upper chamber directed the Committee on Legislative Compliance to ensure that the FCSC chairman and the OHCSF complied with the Senate Resolutions on the matter.

She said that the resolution of the senate was captured in its Dec. 10, 2025 Votes and Proceedings.

Eseoghene said that the Clerk to the National Assembly, Mr Kamoru Ogunlana, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Compliance, Sen. Garba Maidoki and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) had, at various times, written to the commission to comply with the resolution but to no avail.

She called on Nigerians to come to their aid so they can return to work and be able to feed their families. (NAN)

Update news