Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade, on Thursday announced
an indefinite suspension of payment of tuition by indigenes of the
state in the state-owned Cross River State University of Technology
(CRUTECH).
He further extended service year for indigenes of the state who have
completed their one year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and are
still without jobs.
The governor also constituted a seven-man judicial panel of inquiry to
look into complaints of victims of police brutality with a charge on
the panel to do a thorough job.
The panel which is headed by the immediate past Ag. Chief Judge of the
state, Justice Michael Edem, has six other members, including
representatives of youth groups.
Ayade used the occasion to reel out a
number of other measures for the citizens, particularly youths, to
cushion effects of the current economic reality.
The measures include a directive to each of the 18 local governments
to employ 1000 workers each, while the state government will employ
2000 into its civil service, “I have directed all chairmen of councils
to make immediate recruitment of 1000 young people, which means 18000
young people into the local government workforce.
“In addition, the state civil service will also recruit additional
2000. By so doing, we have ordered the immediate employment of 20000
young people into the state and local government civil service. “I
also hereby direct that all Cross Riverians who are students of
CRUTECH should suspend the payment of school fees indefinitely.
“For every single young Cross Riverian who is out of university, has
finished his or her youth service and has no job, we are starting an
NYSC extension service where you will return to Cross River State and
extend your NYSC by one year to give us the opportunity to find a
placement for you.”
According to him “For the 20000 jobs I have asked
to be given immediately, we must ensure that those who benefit from
these jobs are between the ages of 40 and below and it should not be
for politicians, it should be for those young men and women who are
struggling to earn a living.
The governor while identifying with the
#EndSARS movement urged the panel to do a thorough job by ensuring
that justice is not only done but seen to have been done, insisting
that “I stand with the young people of this country to say we must put
an end to SARS and we must put an end to police brutality,” Ayade
said.
DISCLAIMER
The OPINION / COLUMN is authored by independent contributors to the National Accord Newspaper. While contributors adhere to our editorial guidelines, they are not employed by the National Accord Newspaper. The perspectives and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not represent the views of the National Accord Newspaper or its staff.