Some staff of the Taraba State College of Agriculture, Science and Technology have pleaded with the state governor, Agbu Kefas, to come to their rescue by commencing the payment of their long-overdue monthly remuneration.
The staff, who claimed they were employed in 2022, said they have not been remunerated once since their employment nearly two years ago.
Pleading for anonymity, the disturbed staff, who spoke with our reporter on Tuesday in Jalingo, the state capital, expressed their frustration and depression over the non-payment of their salaries since joining the institution.
Emphasizing that they are not protesting, but seeking the governor’s intervention, they highlighted how the situation has been affecting their family members negatively.
The staff, who did not blame the governor for their predicament, are optimistic that if the call gets to his table, he will reach out to them.
“We want to let our father, Governor Agbu Kefas, know that since 2022, when we were employed as staff of the Taraba State College of Agriculture, Science, and Technology, Jalingo, we have not received any salary.
We are appealing to Kefas, as a father and a man of God who has shown love for the civil servants, introducing ideas that would redefine the civil service of Taraba for the better, to please commence our payment to ease our suffering,” one of the staff pleaded.
Aligning his weight to that of his colleagues, another aggrieved staff who blamed the past administration for their predicament, beckoned the incumbent state governor to, as a matter of urgency, wade in.
“We want to believe that the governor, who has so much passion for education and has demonstrated a keen interest in developing the education sector of Taraba, including our college, is not aware of what is happening to us.
He is an action-oriented governor who is working round the clock to ensure Taraba’s greatness, so we believe that he has not been properly briefed about our case and suffering,” another staff member added.
“Many of us have family members who depend solely on us. Working for close to two years without a salary, combined with the current hardship in Nigeria, is becoming overwhelming to bear. We want the working governor to come to our rescue,” another affected staff chipped in.
When reached for comments, the state’s Head of Civil Service, Tino Paul Maigida, said the state government is aware of the situation and that efforts to reach out to them are in the pipeline.
“The Governor has asked me to see him with their memo as soon as he comes back from his journey,” Maigida said.
