Paul Osuyi, Asaba
Some civil servants in Delta State who were suspended at the inception of the Governor Ifeanyi Okowa administration in 2015 have outlined their contributions to the successful re-election of the governor in the March 9 governorship election.
The suspended civil servants, who were employed at the twilight of the immediate past administration of Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan, were suspended when Okowa came on board on the ground that their employment had allegedly violated due process.
But in the build up to the 2019 general elections, Okowa set up a committee to review the process, thereby giving the suspended employees a glimmer of hope of a possible recall.
As a result, the embattled employees said they fully mobilised to vote for the governor in the March 9 election, saying that the process to recall them to service was in progress.
Chairman of the suspended employees, Mr Regha Obus, who congratulated Okowa on his victory at the poll, said the governor’s re-election is for equity, peace and on behalf of the suspended civil servants.
Obus said when the idea of their recall was raised, the group held an emergency congress “where we agreed to work for the re-election of Governor Okowa to safeguard our hopes since he has kept to his promise of revisiting the issue of the suspended civil servants, and his giant stride in infrastructure development.
“Today, the testimony of Governor Okowa’s victory cannot be written without the suspended civil servants who trooped out in their numbers, and their families as well, to cast their votes for Governor Okowa without seeking for money.
“We did it as a sacrifice to support a government that has done a lot, especially revisiting our plight, the true Deltans that got our jobs legitimately. We are overwhelmed and happy, hence we generally concluded to stand by Okowa at this just concluded election, and the results is clear never like before.”