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From John Adams, Minna
The Niger state government has recalled all the civil servants that were suspended for their alleged involvement in partisan politics in the state.
No fewer than 20 staff of the Edati Local Government area of the state, mostly women, were queried/suspended last month, and their August 2022 salaries withheld after they were accused of attending political meetings with the main opposition party in the state, the People Democratic Party (PDP) during office hours.
In a letter of query/suspension of the Staff dated August 02, 2022 and signed by the Staff Officer of the council, Mallam Baba Shaba Gaba for the Director of Administration, accused the affected Staff of “engaging in partisan politics while in the service of Edati local government”.
The Staff Officer in one of the query/suspension letters to one of the affected Staff (name withheld) reads: “investigations revealed that you have absconded yourself from duty post on Thursday, 2nd of August, 2022 to attend a political meeting at PDP office in Edati.
“Consequently upon this development, you are to explain within 24 hours why disciplinary action should not be taken against you for engaging in partisan politics while in active service of Edati local government”.
However after a marathon meeting on Wednesday conveyed by the Permanent Secretary, Local Government Service Commission, Alhaji Nuhu Garba Ngeski with the affected staff, the Council Chairman, Alhaji Zubaru Isah, the Nigerian Labour Congress officials and officials of the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employee (NULGE), the suspension was lifted.
The affected staff were however made to write a letter of apology for their action which the Local Government Service Commission said, contravened local government service rule on political activities as captured in Section 76 sub section 1-4.
According to the local service rule, “no staff in the service shall indicate publicly his support of, or opposition to any party, candidate or policy”.
The staff in their individual letter of apology to the Council, a copy which was made available to our correspondent in Minna with reference number ELD/FN/EST/1/145, admitted that their action ran foul to the local government service rule, and therefore pleaded for forgiveness, promising to turn a new leaf.
“I agreed with the above query/suspension letter and accepted that I am guilty. In line with the above, I pleaded for forgiveness as such act will not happen again”, the letter reads.
