Campaign for Democratic and Workers’ Rights, CDWR, has condemned the sack of non-indigenous civil servants in Abia State by Governor Theodore Orji and called for their immediate reinstatement.

CDWR in a statement by Chinedu Bosah, its Publicity Secretary, said “ Abia State Government is now sacking non-indigenous workers while it collects taxes of different sorts from indigenous and non-indigenous people. The same government shares from crude oil revenue that largely comes from Niger Delta; it also shares from revenue from import duties, VAT etc., while it contributes little. This policy is not only anti-workers, but also divisive and discriminatory.

“The Abia NLC leadership and the rest of the NLC south-east leadership must wage a struggle against it. Workers in Abia state must not in any where have the illusion that the state government is defending their interest; if anything, the government is laying the foundation for more attacks on the already low living standards of people in Abia state.

CDWR added that “workers in Abia state irrespective of their indigenous state, tribe and religion must unite against this callous policy of retrenchment. The Orji-led government is consciously promoting xenophobia among the people aimed at having more money to mismanage. It is a dangerous policy that must be defeated.

Hence, we call on the leadership of NLC to mobilize the entire labour movement to challenge this retrenchment, which may take a worrying dimension in the coming period.

The labour movement must also lead a struggle to reinstate all sacked workers without compromising the implementation of the N18000 minimum wage.”