The 94 sacked lectures of Enugu State College of Education, Technical (ESCET) have appealed to Gov. Peter Mbah for reinstatement.
The group made the appeal in a letter to Mbah, signed by Dr. Egbo Doris, Dr. Njideka Frank, and others, and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Enugu.
In the letter titled “A passionate appeal to reconsider staff disengagement at Enugu State College of Education (Technical) Enugu,” the group said if nothing was done, their disengagement would bring untold hardships to their families.
Mbah had, in October 2023, constituted a seven-member investigative committee to probe alleged fraud and corrupt practices in the school.
According to them, they wrote to the governor as responsible and dedicated indigenes of Enugu State who were employed at ESCET on Oct. 22, 2021.
They stated that on Feb. 26, they received the distressing news of their disengagement from service, which was communicated to them through the acting registrar of the school, Mr. Pat Aneke.
Aneke informed them he took directives from the Government Implementation Committee to deliver the disengagement message to the affected staff.
While appealing to Mbah for reconsideration and reinstatement, the group said: “Our dedication to the educational growth of the school has been top-notch.
“It is only our set and Alvan Ikoku College of Education, Owerri, that were successful in the whole of the South East in the 2023 TETFAIR programme. We believe that the sudden termination of our employment does not accurately reflect our contributions.
“It was only this set, disengaged since the establishment of ESCET, that was able to attract an international education grant for further research work to continue improving the quality of education in Nigeria.
They disclosed that they were special hybrid and highly intellectual academicians that had been working for the institution on how to increase internally generated revenue (IGR) through different research engagements for the school before their disengagement.
According to the group, upon their employment, they remained dedicated and committed to the growth of the college and never deterred from discharging their duties in spite of the irregular payment of staff salaries.
“It is equally sad to state that two of our colleagues lost their pregnancies at their duty post, right inside the examination hall, while selflessly and diligently serving the institution as invigilators.
“May the blood of those innocent babies be enough atonement, and cry for justice on behalf of all the disengaged staff.”
“It is quite unfortunate that both the Investigation and Implementation Committees set up to look into the various challenges of the ESCET never deemed it fit to have a word or two with any of us.
“We strongly believe that the challenges of the institution could be tackled without depleting the already understaffed institution.
“After our employment, proper documentation was done and regularization was done through verification of our documents for relevance, and our names were duly added to the ESCET payroll.”
They equally alleged that they were being owed cumulatively to the tune of 13 months of salary arrears, and “you can imagine the excruciating pain and rude shock this sad news triggered on us.
“We are those fathers, mothers, aunties, uncles, sisters, and brothers who have found excuses explaining to our children and families why lunch and dinner are no longer available on the table.” (NAN)
