138 ABS Staff Sacked By Obi, Recalled By Obi For Obiano, As Uzodike Hands Over To Onyima, Former Sun MD/Editor In Chief

                    

                                         

There was jubilation in Anambra state yesterday following the recall of the 138 staff of the Anambra state Broadcasting Co-operation (ABS), Awka and redeployment to other ministries where they have comparative advantage in competency than ABS.

Outgoing Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism Anambra state , Chief Joe-Martins Uzodike announced this while handing over to his successor , Chief Tony Onyima, former MD/Editor on Chief of The Sun Newspapers.

Uzodike now SSA to Obiano on Political Matters,informed Onyima that the decision to sack the 138 officers was that of Executive Council of former Governor Peter Obi ,OON as a way to reduce the overload in ABS, but rather than sack them he changed it to redeployment but was  unfortunately rejected by the Civil Service Commission and Head of Service.

He explained further that Governor Peter Obi at the twilight of his administration summoned another emergency Executive council meeting where he revised the Exco decision sacking the workers. He said Obi ordered the disengaged workers to be redeployed to other ministries which he said most of them have done that.   

Uzodike who handed over a 15 paged document to Onyima charged him to continue to continue pursuing some of the things he could not finish before the change of baton like ensuring that ABS is not shut down by December this year because it is yet to be digitalized as the station still operate on analogue.

‘’ABS by 31^st December, 2014 would be shut down by the National Broadcasting Commission because it is still operating as analogue and a deadline has been given for all Broadcast stations to change to digital. They must go digital or NBC will shut it down, so please intervene.

He informed that the signage department having hired professionals increased the revenue by 500 percent adding that the agency need to be properly structured for effective and optimal performance.

He prayed that in the 2015 elections that APGA gets the majority of political positions in the state House and other positions to still be relevant.

The former commissioner reminded that all government publications should be done with the Government printing press in line with exco decision to be able to keep the 78 persons working there active as they must be paid at the end of the month whether they worked or not.

He said National Light has an MD Obi Nwude who has worked as MD for 13 years and very competent but reminded Onyima that he is a specialist in setting up newspapers. He said he stopped National Light publishing at Christian Outlook Nnewi by refurbishing their printing press as well as printing in Newsprint.

Uzodike reminded that e met an abandoned Ministry of Information, culture and Tourism as nothing was happening until he took over and did his best reminding that ABS was not received even in Awka but has been upgraded by shifting the Mast  to Enugu-Ukwu which is 300ft on top of Awka which is 300 ft below. The mast is 900ft above Awka now hence it is got in Benue , Enugu and other states other than Anambra and signals gotten well in all parts of Anambra. He said ABS Onitsha is in a better environment as he built two houses rather than one approved and another building at Enugu-Ukwu.

He said the Library was last built in 1966 but former Governor Obi has broken the record by building a Library in Awka that has been commissioned with E-Library that Onitsha and Awka library could be assessed either way from Awka or from Onitsha even better than Awka-Ibom library that has more money as announced by the Library Association in Nigeria hence the Chief Librarian is being sent to Hongkong on their invitation to tell them the magic in Anambra state that made it rated best in Nigeria.

Responding, the new Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Chief Tony Onyima said only team work by  everbody concerned would make him give his best to the state in the Ministry but reminded that he is a man of details and could work late until he actualizes his mandate.

Onyima said transition from Obi to Governor Willie Obiano was great and unprecedented in the history of the country where there was no bitterness or insinuations between the outgoing and incoming governors, hence he would leverage on that for the good of the state.

He appealed that for them to actualize the vision of the Governor, his body language should e watched to enable the ministry project every activity of the Governor adequately in line with his 4 C’s captured in oil and Gas , Agriculture, Trade and Commerce and Industrialization which he described as the enablers for other successful feats already being recorded by the Obiano administration.

He reminded that Technology is the buzz around now and everybody must be adaptable to learning new things for work to be smooth by being on their toes.