March 13, 2007
In its desperate attempts to keep the public in ignorance about the goings on in its administration, Ebonyi State Government has sent a journalist working with the State Broadcasting Station, Ebonyi Broadcasting Service, EBBS, on indefinite suspension from duty without pay for allegedly alerting reporters of two national daily newspapers on the interrogation of officials of the government by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. According to the suspension letter signed by on behalf of the General Manager of the radio station, David O. Otu, and made available to newsmen in Abakaliki, the government claimed that the journalist, Mr. Steven O. Alefia, distributed news releases to correspondents of the newspapers in Enugu, which it said led to the publication of the news items in the dailies. Part of the letter read: “In compliance with Reg. 11.18 of operating conditions of service, the EBBS management at its emergency meeting on Tuesday February 5, 2007 directed that you should be suspended indefinitely from duty without pay with effect from February 2007, pending the resolution of your anti-government activities against the state government without cause or facts which is capable of inciting the people against the government ad public officers”. Precisely the government said its action is sequel to the publication at page 10 titled “EFCC Quizzes Ebonyi Commissioners, Others” in the Daily Sun Newspaper and on the front page of the National Mirror newspaper titled “EFCC Storms Ebonyi Quizzes 9 Officials” of Tuesday, January 30, 2007. Confirming the development, the state Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mr. Abia Onyike, said Mr. Alefia was hobnobbing with opposition politicians in contravention of the statutes establishing his office adding that “if the young man wants to play politics he should quit the service of the state owned parastatal”. Onyike noted that as a parastatal, the Ebonyi Broadcasting Service, was not guided by the civil service rules and regulations as such, he pointed out Mr. Alefia who is a controller in the station should not expect to be treated as a civil servant. However when contacted, Alefia disclosed that the Information commissioner had earlier told him that he (Commissioner) was under pressure by the Government to have him (Alefia) punished for unfounded allegations without any justifiable reasons. Alefia lamented that he was not given opportunity to defend himself or even issued with a query before the punishment was prescribed adding that the action of the government was clearly in breach of EBBS staff regulations and total violation of all existing civil or public service rules. Insisting that due process was not followed in punishing him, the suspended staff stated: “For the avoidance of doubts, I am not a staff of the two newspapers, (Sun and National Mirror) as to have caused the publication of the EFCC versus Ebonyi Government stories as alleged in paragraph two of the suspension letter. I did not at any time distribute any materials to correspondents as alleged and therefore wonder why I should be associated with the stories. This desperate clamp down on innocent journalists is uncalled for in this democratic dispensation”. Alefia who said he has written an open letter to the state Governor, Dr. Sam Egwu, pleaded with authorities to take steps to redress the anomaly and gross injustice being meted out to him adding that he has notified the security agencies and the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, about other sundry threats to his life. Ever since the EFCC exploit in his state was made public and the accusation that he did not declare his assets to the Code of Conduct Bureau, Governor Sam Egwu has remained taciturn, shying away from newsmen refraining to comment on the various cases of sleaze and non-performance against his administration. Not long ago in Onicha-Igboeze, one of the communities of the state, the people including women and children took to the streets protesting the lack of basic amenities and “democracy dividends” in their area, which led to the death of four persons including two police officers. As the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, prepares to start its electioneering campaigns there are fears that the Governor may be attacked by the people who claim that the Governor neglected them and instead chose to amass private wealth
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