Governor Soludo Threatens To Cut Salaries Of Workers Who Obey IPOB’s Sit-At-Home Order
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The executive Governor of Anambra State, Charles Soludo, has threatened to cut salaries of workers who fail to go to work on Monday in compliance with the infamous sit-at-home order usually enforced by the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
Mr Soludo stated this on Monday while addressing the state workers during the 2023 May Day celebration held at the Alex Ekwueme Square, Awka.
The governor said the Monday sit-at-home had become an excuse for workers to stop coming to work on Mondays, insisting that such would not continue under his watch.
“Monday sit-at-home has become an excuse for workers to stop coming to work on Mondays. This cannot continue. You cannot be working for just four days a week and earn full salaries.
“We must get back to working on Mondays. If we do not go to work, we must not get our full salary. We must be paid proportionally with the number of days we work. If we must continue staying away from work on Mondays, then we will start coming to work on Saturday,” he said.
Mr Soludo said he had increased the workers’ salaries by 10 per cent in December and pleaded with them to start coming to work on Mondays.
Recall that IPOB, in August 2021, introduced the sit-at-home order every Monday across the South-east to pressure the Nigerian government to release its detained leader, Nnamdi Kanu, who is on trial at the Federal High Court, Abuja, for alleged terrorism.
The separatist group later suspended the order, in preference for the order to be implemented only on the days Mr Kanu appears in court.
But despite its suspension, residents of the five South-east states, Enugu, Ebonyi, Imo, Abia and Anambra, have been observing the Monday sit-at-home order, mostly out of fear.
Some residents and motorists, including commuters, have been attacked lately by gunmen for stepping out of their homes on Monday and other declared sit-at-home days.
IPOB under the leadership of Mr Kanu has repeatedly disowned the enforcers of the Monday sit-at-home in the region.
It maintained that the Monday sit-at-home remains suspended and described those behind the civil action as “criminals” attempting to blackmail the secessionist group.
IPOB is leading agitation for an independent state of Biafra which it wants carved out from the South-east and some parts of the south-south Nigeria.
A factional IPOB leader, Simon Ekpa, has been accused of being behind the continued sit-at-home orders in the region.
Mr Ekpa, a Nigerian-Finnish citizen has repeatedly declared sit-at-home orders across the region.
Aside from the Monday sit-at-home, the IPOB factional leader has been declaring sit-at-home in the region via his social media handles, mainly Twitter.
Mr Soludo, on his part, had made unsuccessful attempts to stop the civil action in Anambra, shortly after being sworn-in as the governor of the state.
