By BASSEY BENSON

Cross River Workers Protest 11 Months Without Pay, Demand Immediate Payroll Inclusion

NEWLY employed local government workers in Cross River State have taken their grievances to the streets, demanding payment of 11 months’ salary arrears and formal inclusion in the state payroll.

The workers staged a peaceful protest in Calabar on Wednesday despite heavy rainfall. They marched through major streets towards the Governor’s Office, carrying placards that highlighted their financial hardship.

The protesters said they were employed in 2025 and had continued reporting for duty without receiving salaries.

Workers demand payment for services rendered

Speaking for the protesters, Uchi Julius said the prolonged delay had pushed many affected workers into severe financial difficulties.

He said some workers could no longer afford basic household needs and had resorted to borrowing money from relatives and friends.

“The prolonged delay has really subjected many workers to severe hardship,” Julius said.

He also alleged that some affected workers had died during the government’s verification process.

According to him, the protesters were not demanding special treatment but payment for work already performed.

He cited the reported recruitment of about 2,000 health workers and argued that the affected employees should be properly integrated into the payroll system.

Protesters raise concerns over deaths

The workers also linked the prolonged uncertainty surrounding their employment to the deaths of some colleagues.

Julius claimed that more than six affected workers had died.

Another protester, Happiness Augustine, said she had worked for about a year without receiving any salary.

She appealed directly to Governor Bassey Otu to intervene and resolve what she described as administrative delays.

“We have families to take care of, and we have continued working without salaries,” Augustine said.

She also alleged that a colleague died in a road accident while travelling for a government screening exercise.

The allegations could not independently establish the circumstances of the reported deaths, but they underline the wider human consequences the protesters associate with the unresolved payroll dispute.

Government says process is nearing conclusion

The state government acknowledged the workers’ grievances.

Addressing the protesters, Secretary to the State Government Anthony Enoh said the administration had already taken steps to investigate the circumstances surrounding their employment.

He said the government established a panel of inquiry following an earlier protest by the workers.

According to Enoh, the panel had completed its investigation and submitted its report.

He added that a white paper had also been prepared and that the government had entered the implementation stage.

Two-week assurance

Enoh appealed to the workers to remain patient.

He assured them that the government would take action within two weeks.

“If you have waited for almost a year, two weeks is not too long,” he told the protesters.

The assurance offers a possible resolution to a dispute that has left workers without salaries for most of their first year in public service.

For the workers, however, the central issue remains straightforward: they want confirmation of their employment status, inclusion on the payroll and payment of the salaries they say they have earned.

The coming weeks will therefore test whether the government’s promised implementation can resolve the dispute and restore confidence among the affected employees.