Paul Osuyi, Asaba

GOVERNOR Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State has said the over 3,500 civil servants suspended in 2015 for alleged irregularities in recruitment process, will be recalled within one month.

The governor’s assurance, which was given in Asaba when the state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) leadership visited him, is coming on the heels of series of agitations by the affected personnel for their recall into the service.

However, the governor insisted that all the suspended civil servants will not be recalled, maintaining that it is only Deltans among them that would be recalled.

The governor said he had directed the Head of Service (HoS) and the Civil Service Commission to look into the case of the suspended workers and identify the Deltans among them.

Okowa said he has directed the HoS and the Civil Service Commission to do a need assessment for the state and within the next one month, those qualified would be recalled.

Okowa said government recently employed about 1,000 teachers and added that his administration would employ more workers to fill vacant positions in the service.

“We need more than the 1,000 teachers we have engaged and when we look at their entitlements, we will engage more.

“We are also engaging 100 extension officers to boost our drive in the agriculture sector which will ensure food sufficiency, and generate employment for our people.

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“From the employment of the teachers, you will observe quality persons were engaged to teach our children.

“The very best were taken because, in our employment drive, we are not only looking at the qualified persons but, those who have the knowledge to teach our children in the critical areas,” Okowa said.

Earlier, NLC Chairman, Goodluck Oforbruku, said the visit was to thank the governor for his support to organised labour and workers in the state.

Meanwhile, most pupils and students of public primary and secondary schools in Delta State are yet to resume for the academic session despite the announcement of plans to conduct a welcome back test for them.

As at yesterday, which was the third day of resumption, the schools still witnessed scanty presence of pupils and students, a development that got the Commissioner of Basic and Secondary Education, Patrick Ukah, thinking of the next step to take, to attract them back to school.

Ukah, who expressed surprised at the low turn out during a monitoring exercise to schools in Ika South and Ika North East local government areas, urged school heads and principals to partner Parents Teachers Associations (PTAs) and Community Development Unions (CDUs) to improve school attendance.

The commissioner told principals and school heads to ensure the welcome back test is administered to students to form part of their continuous assessment.

Besides, he asked chief inspectors of education (CIEs), principals and school heads to device a means they would use in communicating with the parents of the students through the PTAs and CDUs so that they can employ the services of town criers in their communities to bring to the awareness of the parents while their children should return quickly back to school.