Permanent Secretaries who were forcefully retired two years ago in Abia State by the incumbent administration have cried out to the governor of the state, Dr Alex Chioma Otti to come to their aid over their unpaid entitlements.

The Permanent Secretaries made the appeal after a meeting with the state’s Head of Service, Mr Benson Ojeikere, in Umuahia, the state capital.

Spokesperson of the Permanent Secretaries, and a former Permanent Secretary of the Government House, Umuahia, Mr Nkwachukwu Agomuoh told South-East PUNCH that they came to meet with the HoS over their present plight, occasioned by their unpaid entitlements and to bring it to the attention of the state governor for him to kindly pay them their unpaid entitlements, which included, severance allowance, furniture allowance and gratuity.

Mr Agomuoh said they were about 30 Permanent Secretaries who were retired in 2023, without benefits and since then to date, nothing had been paid to them even, as the economy bites hard.

He implored the governor on behalf of his colleagues to intervene in the matter for them to be paid, stating that their present condition is not savoury, to say the least.

Thanking the governor for his earlier promises to pay them, the retired Permanent Secretaries urged him to ensure that the officials he instructed to carry out the instruction complied.


Mr Agomuo, who commended the G governor for his efforts to transform the state, appealed to him to consider their plight.

He said, “Our appeal to our governor who has been doing so much in so many other sectors, is to consider our plight. Let him consider the fate of those who are deservedly supposed to be in service, but were compulsorily retired since 2023.

“The meeting with the HoS was fruitful and robust. He told us that the governor has us in his plans. He assured us that our entitlements would be cleared.

“We can say we are satisfied with the explanations he has given, but we are not satisfied that weeks and months are going, and nothing has happened.”

Meanwhile, the affected retired Permanent Secretaries have accused the state Accountant General of being behind the delays in the payment of their entitlements.


https://punchng.com/retired-abia-perm-secs-plead-for-payment-of-entitlements/