Lawyers, students block governor’s office in Calabar

By CLEMENT JAMES, Calabar

Barely one hour after Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State swore-in Justice Eyo Effiom Ita as the acting Chief Judge of the state on Monday, lawyers in their numbers stormed his office and blocked the gate.

The lawyers were, however, late as the governor had left before their arrival, but they insisted that they do not need any “acting” Chief Judge in the state, promising to return to Governor’s Office tomorrow

Effiom Ayi, their spokesman insisted that both the governor and the State House of Assembly were playing politics with the issue of a substantive Chief Judge, explaining that lawyers in the state will not recognise the current Acting Chief Judge.

But no sooner had the lawyers left that youths also in their number, protesting against the continued strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASSU) arrived the gate and despite the appeal from the Permanent Secretary in the office of the State Security Adviser, Sir Alfred Mboto, refused to leave.

Speaking to our correspondent at the governor’s gate, one of the protesters, who gave his name as Saviour Mba, said they were protesting because they were students of the Cross River State University of Technology (CRUTEC) and that their lecturers have not been paid for months, thus endangering their education.

“We have spent so much time staying at home and the governor is not ready to pay our lecturers their salaries for them to return to the classrooms. We are tired of staying at home and we are here to see the governor,” he said. (New Telegraph)