TheCable

Uchenna Obigwe, chairman of the Abia state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), says after 26 years of its creation, “the state is still crawling like a baby” in terms of development.

Obigwe said this while speaking on the 26th anniversary of the state and the level of progress so far recorded.

Ibrahim Babangia, former military president, created Abia on August 27, 1991.

According to Obigwe, the extent of decay in infrastructure is enormous and it will take time for any meaningful development to be achieved in the state.

On the fate of workers, Obigwe said it had not been easy for civil servants in the state, owing to the delays in the payment of salaries.

“At 26, Abia is still crawling like a baby because previous administrations failed to develop the state,” Obigwe said.

“You know that this is my constituency, so I can safely say that this administration is doing well to better the lot of the civil servants in the state.

“Today, the governor, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, has paid workers in the ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) up to date.

“We only have issues with the local government workers, teachers in primary and secondary schools, some parastatal agencies and pensioners.

“If the government can take care of the salaries of this category of workers like those in the MDAs then our problem is over.”

Ogbonnaya Iheaka, pioneer chairman of the state council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), also said that thus far, Abia had not done well in the area of development.

He said the attitude of successive administrations is one of “the winner takes all” to the detriment of the interest of the greater majority of the people.

Iheaka also said that the state had not experienced the required federal presence.

“Certain basic things that ought to be done to drive development in the state were not done,” Iheaka said.

“For instance, it was only during the last administration that workers’ secretariat was built yet it was far below the standard you find in other states.

“Since the return of democratic rule in 1999, political leaders have concentrated development in their own areas and paid little or no attention to other sections of the state.

“Governors always reserved strategic political and civil service appointments for people from their area.

“What this means is that place of origin has taken the position of merit.

“This unwholesome sectional tendency had been the trend since 1999 to date and it is dangerous for the state.”