Chaos In Kogi-State: Protesters Takes Over State Head Quarter

Trouble started at the Lokoja local government area secretariat in the morning when some staff members that resumed for duty discovered that the list of those that were successful and unsuccessful at the screening had been pasted on the wall of one of the offices.

Protest on Monday rocked Lokoja, the Kogi State capital following the release of the results of the screening exercise embarked upon by the state government for its workers.

Just as the workers of the Lokoja local government area that were screened out expressed anger and protested the outcome, palpable fear and anxiety enveloped the other 20 local government areas as they awaited the pasting of the list of the cleared workers.

This is coming just as the workers of the state owned higher institutions adhered to the directive by the Joint Action Committee (JAC) to commence a five-day warning strike over the non-payment of salary to some of its members.

According to the workers, over 300 of them had been screened out and referred to as ghost workers by the state government.

The development drew the attention of many of the affected workers to the secretariat following, which they started protesting and chanting various anti-government songs.

The workers locked up the secretariat premises and made bonfire on the IBB way that passed through the front of the council, making human and vehicular movement impossible in the area.

Many travellers were caught in the web of the protest since the road is a major one being plied by people going to the eastern part from the northern part of the country.

Many petrol tankers that could not make a detour or take another routes as other smaller vehicles had to wait for several hours because of the fire from the bonfire located at strategic places in the area.