Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma has mandated that any civil servant absent from work on Mondays will forfeit their salaries.
The directive was announced by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Declan Emelumba, in a statement issued on Tuesday.
The statement highlighted the governor’s concern over the growing trend of civil servants skipping work on Mondays without permission or authorization. It read: “The Government of Imo State has observed with dismay that some civil servants, for inexplicable reasons, absent themselves from duties, especially on Mondays. This is unacceptable, moreover, since such civil servants neither obtain permission nor have authorization of their superiors to abstain from duty, thereby making their conduct illegal and unprofessional.”
Governor Uzodimma views this behavior as a direct challenge to government authority and has warned that it will attract sanctions. The statement continued: “Going forward, the governor of Imo State, Sen Hope Uzodimma, has directed that any civil servant who absents himself/herself from duty on Mondays or any other day for that matter will lose his/her salary in addition to other punishments that may be recommended against him/her.”
Permanent secretaries, heads of parastatals, and heads of government agencies have been instructed to immediately start daily roll calls to ensure compliance with the directive.
This development comes in the wake of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) introducing a sit-at-home order every Monday across the South-east in August 2021, to pressure the Nigerian government to release its detained leader, Nnamdi Kanu, who is standing trial for alleged treason at the Federal High Court, Abuja. Despite IPOB’s amendment to limit the order to Kanu’s court appearance days, many residents in the South-east, including Imo State, continue to observe the Monday sit-at-home order out of fear.
