ILM Gives FG Ultimatum To Rectify Maltreatment Of Bayelsa Command Of NSCDC….Alleges Lopsided Recruitment, Selling Of State Slots, Promotion Denial….Calls On Diri, National Assembly, INC To intervene
By Amos Odeh.
A pressure group christened as Izon Liberation Movement has given the Federal Government a 30-day ultimatum to correct the alleged maltreatment of the Bayelsa state Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).
Convener of the group, Doctor Funkekeme Moses while briefing newsmen at the Journalists Hangout at Punch Road Amarata in Yenagoa the Bayelsa state capital, highlighted some of the alleged anomalies in the Bayelsa Command of the NSCDC to include non promotion of Bayelsa born eligible officers, lopsided employment and sales of Bayelsa slots to non indigenous persons.
Dr. Moses, who made a graphic presentation of facts and details to buttress his claim during the briefing, said out of 98 Senior Officers from Bayelsa state who became eligible for promotion after writing the 2022 promotion examination, only 13 were promoted, living the rest unattended to for no reason.
While noting that the 2023 promotion examination has also been concluded in Benin City, Edo state, the convener of ILM cautioned against a repeat of what happened to Bayelsa indigenous senior officers of the NSCDC last year where they were unjustly denied promotion.
“We condemn in its entirety a situation whereby Bayelsans serving with the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps NSCDC will be treated as second class citizens.
“Our records are authentic. We have it on good ground that Bayelsa born senior officers who were eligible for promotion in 2022 were denied promotion. Out of 98, only 13 were promoted. We call on the relevant authorities to effect the promotions without further delay.
“We demand that a discreet investigation panel be setup by the federal government to unravel the cause of this anomaly, as a repeat will not be condoned by the Izon Nation.
“We therefore call on the governor of Bayelsa state, Senator Douye Diri and the Ijaw National Congress INC to intervene with a view to correcting this undeserved maltreatment being meted to a state that produces the wealth of the Nigerian nation.
“Also at our disposal is the information that there is lopsidedness in the recruitment of new officers into the NSCDC as it concerns Bayelsa in relation to other states. We are also aware that the top hierarchy of the NSCDC are selling the employment chances meant for Bayelsans in fragrant disobedience to the Federal Character Principle,” the ILM convener stated.
Dr. Moses also pointed out that out of the 12 Commanders who had headed the Bayelsa state Command of the NSCDC since its inception, only one in the person of Ben Dikuro was a Bayelsan.
The group called on Bayelsans serving at the Federal Character Commission as well as the national assembly to ensure that Bayelsa is not shortchanged in any guise, adding that the ILM would not hesitate to sick legal redress if the misdemeanors in the NSCDC continued.