Ihedioha To Okorocha: Stop Foreign Trips, Sack Of Imo Workers

IHEDIOHA

Former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha has advised Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha to suspend his foreign trips to save tax payers money  as such  trips have not yielded anything apart from photo sessions with ‘foreign investors’'

Governor Okorocha last week embarked on vacation abroad.

Ihedioha called on the Governor to rescind his decision to disengage 3,000 workers and scrapping of 19 parastatals. He said Okorocha’s action is reckless and lack any form of economic sense.

 In a statement signed by the former Deputy Speaker’s Media aide, Mr. Chibuike Onyeukwu, he said though there is economic downturn in the country as a result of dwindling oil revenue, the solution is not arbitrary disengagement of workers and scarpping  key parastatals such as the Hospitals Management Board, Imo Water Corporation, Imo State Investment Protection Agency, Agricultural Development Programme (ADP), Imo Palm Plantain (Adapalm), Imo Consumer Protection Agency, Imo Sports Council etc.

  

 Part of the statement reads “Having anchored his second term election campaign on the mantra of job, job, job, industry, industry, industry; factory, factory, factory; employment, employment, employment, Imo people looked forward to more employment opportunities and improved working conditions instead of disengaging the already demoralized workers.

“The Governor’s penchant for sacking thousands of workers as his only alternative to addressing economic issues is unfortunately not in the interest of the state and indeed has vindicated Chief Ihedioha’s earlier warning that Imo was sliding towards a failed state as a result of lack of economic programmes and good governance.”

 “It is worrisome that Imo State as an oil producing state with prospects in tourism and agriculture has the highest number of unemployed graduates in the South East.”

Chief Ihedioha however urged the Governor to kindly recall the sacked workers and review his decision to scrap parastatals, particularly the key agencies, maintaining that, his actions would only increase the suffering of the citizens and heighten insecurity across the state.

He further advised the governor to immediately constitute his economic team with a view to articulating a workable policy towards arresting the situation and save the state from total collapse.