Newly employed local government workers in Cross River State have staged a peaceful protest in Calabar over 11 months of unpaid salaries, urging Governor Bassey Otu to approve their enrolment on the state payroll.
The protesters, drawn from various local government areas, marched through major streets of the state capital to the Governor’s Office despite a heavy rain, displaying placards with inscriptions, ‘We are suffering,’ ‘Payroll us,’ and ‘We need our salaries.’
Speaking on Wednesday on behalf of the workers, one of the workers, Uchi Julius, said many of those employed in 2025 had resumed duties but had yet to receive salaries despite working for almost a year.
He said, “The prolonged delay has really subjected many workers to severe hardship. Some of us are now struggling to feed our families. Some of us have died during the verification process initiated by the government.”
Julius stated that majority of them are now depending on borrowing from families and friends to live.
