Reinstate 217 sacked Polytechnic workers, court orders Rivers

The Rivers State Government has been ordered to reinstates the 217 sacked workers of the Ken Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic in Bori, Khana Local Government Area of the state.

Justice Polycarp Hamman of the National Industrial Court in Port Harcourt gave the order while ruling on the matter.

Justice Hamman said the state government did not follow due process in the sacking of the affected staff.

Amannah Peace and three others representing sacked workers from the Polytechnic had dragged the Rivers State Government to court for unlawfully disengaging them.

The claimants who were employed in April 2015 during the Rotimi Amaechi administration as academic and non-academic staff of the institution claimed that they concluded their biometrics and had resumed work when they were informed that the entire employment exercise was cancelled by the Rivers State government led by Governor Nyesom Wike.

However, Justice Hamman who ordered the reinstate of the workers, also mandated the authorities to pay all their outstanding salaries.

Counsel for the sacked workers, Courage Nsirimovu, who spoke to newsmen immediately after the judgement, said it was clear that the Rivers State Government erred in its decision.

Nsirimovu advised the Rivers State Government not to appeal the judgement.

“Every party had the right to appeal. The moment court has said they be reinstated , the status quo is that right now they are employees of Ken Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic. Any person that harasses them would have to face the court for contempt proceedings.

“The government has a right to appeal. But then in the spirit of socio-economic justice and in the spirit of building relationships, the government should ignore it,” Nsirimovu added.

(THISDAY)