The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Abia State chapter, has once again carpeted Governor Okezie Ikpeazu for the inability of his government to pay accumulated salaries and pension arrears owed Abia workers and senior citizens respectively.

This is as the party appealed to the Governor to show some sympathy rather than wickedness to workers and pensioners by paying what is due to them especially during this Yuletide season.

The party, in a statement signed by its state chairman, Hon. Nkem Okoro JP, which was made available to newsmen on Sunday, said it is both unlawful and ungodly to do otherwise given the amount of money the government receives every month.

The statement reads: “The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Abia state chapter received with great sadness more news of protests embarked on by Abia Civil Servants who are being owed months of accumulated salary arrears.

“We feel terribly disappointed that after carrying out countless verification exercises and setting up different salary committees, the Okezie Ikpeazu-led government has been unable to tackle the embarrassing problem of nonpayment of salaries.

“It would be recalled that after many failed promises and engagements, including setting up of Joint Government-Workers Negotiation committees, Ikpeazu made a well-publicised pledge to clear all arrears of salaries owed workers by December 2018. Unfortunately, the government reneged once again on this promise.

“We are seriously worried, because the failure of the Ikpeazu led government to prioritise the welfare of workers since assumption of office, manifests the government as one that is not in tune with modern economic principles, especially where it concerns the role of prompt payment of salaries in the economic development of a state.

“Ikpeazu’s failure to tackle the salary challenges confronting Abia workers has not only retarded development in Abia, but has also indicted the government as one that has failed to exhibit frugality and accountability in the management of Abia resources. There are no tenable explanation for this.

“It’s an intolerable insult on the sensibilities of Abia workers that while workers in progressive states had since received their December salaries, including 13th month salaries, many Abia workers are just receiving their April salary as at December, while many have no hope of receiving at all. We can find no words to explain Ikpeazu’s action other than wickedness.

“We had reminded the Ikpeazu-led government that it would be impossible for her to change the sad narrative in the Abia Civil Service without transparent leadership. We had also warned that no unmotivated workforce can give a satisfactory output. Unfortunately, the government seems more interested in meeting the greed of professional politicians and sycophants than passionately attending to the genuine needs and wellbeing of Abia masses.

“As at this moment, many Abia Pensioners have lost every hope of ever being paid their pension arrears, having been repeatedly dribbled with unfulfilled promises by the government. This is not the hallmark of a God’s own state.

“We know that Governor Okezie Ikpeazu still superintendents over the affairs of the 17 LGAs of the state vis-a-vis their resources. Therefore, we hold him responsible for the salary protests rocking the LGAs.

“We are once again appealing to the Okezie Ikpeazu-led government to show some sympathy to our workers and senior citizens by paying them what is due to them, because it’s both unlawful and ungodly to do otherwise, more so, given the amount of money this government receives every month.”

Update news