RAYMOND OZOJI reports
The Anambra State Local Government Service Commission has suspended staff of Anambra-East, Nnewi-South and Ekwusigo Local Government Areas over absence from official duties without permission.
Speaking exclusively to HEADLINE NEWS in his office at Awka, Chairman of the Commission Chief Barr. Vincent Ifeanyichukwu Ezeaka, said the Commission discovered that reports of regular attendance to duties were always sent to the Commission but upon on-the-spot check at the aforementioned council areas, it found out that the reports of regular attendance to duties were fallacious and fictitious as truancy and unnecessary absenteeism from duty posts have become the grand norm amongst local government workers.
Ezeaka stated that at Anambra-East Local Government, the officers were suspended but were later recalled. And as if that was not enough lesson for other local government staff, he took his unscheduled visit to Nnewi-South where he discovered that the workers' attitudes to work was nothing to write home about.
He said at Nnewi-South Local Government, it was shocking to discover that out of the 109 workers posted to work there, not up to 34 persons came to work in a particular month since January this year which he said was the main reason he issued them outright suspension.
Ezeaka who said that he was at Nnewi-South Local Government before 10am on the day of his on-the-spot check, stressed that he waited from the time he arrived till 11am for the staff to come to work but none did except the Director of Personnel. That even the Head of Local Government Administration at Nnewi-South and some Directors were conspicuously absent the day he came for inspection.
He therefore explained that they were not only suspended for unnecessarily absenting themselves from duties but also their inability to make the workers come to work, adding that it is their duty to make the workers come to work and it is equally their duty to ensure that the biometric machines are functional for attendance purposes.
The Commission's Chairman was of the opinion that the affected senior cadre staff of the local governments were unable to manage other staff members as he believes that the whole essence of staff management is to curb truancy, lateness to work and ensure improved productivity in the system.
The Commission's boss maintained that the productivity level at Nnewi-South Local Government was very low which was why the affected staff were suspended.
Ezeaka noted that it was a similar situation at Ekwusigo Local Government Council. He said he was at Ekwusigo Local Government by 9am on Wednesday last week and stayed till 10:15am and surprisingly, only about 24 persons responded to duty out of 97 workers posted to work there.
Although he said that the Head of Local Government Administration, some Directors and Heads of Departments at Ekwusigo Local Government were present in their offices upon his visit, he maintained that those who were absent from duty will be suspended and surcharged for not coming to work.
That the Head of Personnel Management in Ekwusigo Local Government will have to explain why the 97 workers posted to work there don't come to work and why do they send reports of regular attendance to duty, when people don't come to work.
He said his routine on-the-spot checks and inspections will continue on other local governments as time and resources permit because they must go back to work and there must be evidence that they worked for salaries they are being paid at the end of every month.
He disclosed that all the affected staff have been suspended for abdicating their responsibilities in their respective duty posts. Although he mentioned that some of the biometric attendance machines are not functional but he insisted that it is the duty of the Heads of Local Government Administration to make sure that the machines work in order to regulate attendance to duty on a daily basis.
He therefore emphasized that official duties begin at 8am and ends at 4pm daily including Mondays, stressing that the suspended workers flouted the afore stated official regulation.
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