Okorocha Under Fire For Declaring Two Weeks Public Holiday

Imo state governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha appears to have courted the ire of opposition parties and rights groups in the state following his declaration of two weeks Christmas holiday for civil servants. The opposition parties agree that it was wrong for the governor to simply grind the state to a halt in the name of celebrating Christmas not minding its attendant effect on the state’s economy.

Reacting to the declaration, the State Chairman of the All Nigeria National Party (ANPP), Dr. Vitalis Orikaeze Ajumbe, said it was an indication that the government had no plans and vision for the state.

“This is to show that this government has no vision” he started.

“There is nowhere in the world where the government declares two weeks Christmas holiday for civil servants which meant that the state would be practically shut down which also means huge revenue loss to the state, adding that the government did not also consider those coming from abroad that might require the services of the civil servants, so it simply shows that both the government and the civil servants are idle.”

In its own reaction, the peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who used to control the state from 1999 until 2011 when the incumbent defeated the party’s candidate , Ikedi Ohakim at the polls, throught its state publicity secretary, Chief Byleden Amajirionwu, described the holiday as reckless and irresponsible, adding that the government was obviously “naive” to the economic implications of its action. “The governor appears to be naive on the economic implications of such notorious holiday, this action goes further to explain our stand that this administration that this Administration is ruthlessly disorganized and deceitful”.

Similarly, the acting National President of the Civil Liberties Organization, Comrade Uche Durueke, a legal practitioner described it as nonsense wondering how the government could ever conceive of such an idea, noting that it would have a far reaching effect on the people and economy. “As far as I am concerned it is nonsense because as a lawyer, I cannot go to the court now because of the holidays.”

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Imo Governor, Okorocha, Calls For The Scrapping Of NYSC

Imo State Governor, Chief Rochas Okorocha, has called for the scrapping of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and advocated for the setting up of specialised institutions to improve the standard of education in the country.

Okorocha who said this in a speech he delivered at the 50th anniversary lecture of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria in Kaduna State said the NYSC scheme had outlived its usefulness. “The NYSC was set up to promote unity but that has failed, so we need to look into other areas to improve the quality of education for our youths’ he said.

Okorocha called for the establishment of specialised schools like the Law School in all fields of study to equip students with practical skills to fit into the modern society. “It is worrying that some of our graduates cannot read or write but if they attend specialised schools after graduation they can have more practical skills than theoretical,” he added.

Okorocha said exposing graduates to further practical skill acquisition would also assist government to determine the placement of universities on the scale of excellence. “We should stop grading universities by age but by specialisation which can be achieved through exposure to other graduates in a post graduate school,” he added.

The governor called on universities to also consider alternative sources of funding rather than relying on government for all revenue. “Universities can set up farms to produce food and technology firms to bid for contracts to increase internal revenue,” he said.

Okorocha also called on universities to look into the bloated number of staff to save costs. “Most universities have a huge number of non-academic staff and other non-essential staff coupled with adjunct teachers that are a drain on the resources of universities,” he stated.

Okorocha challenged the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to cooperate with university authorities to survive by reducing consistent demands for wage increases and allowances. “ASUU should do more than just plan for strikes over the least problems. They should engage university authorities on ways to save costs,” he said.

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