A recruitment controversy has erupted at Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike (MOUAU) in Abia State, after 127 newly employed staff were dismissed five months into their service, having worked throughout that period without receiving a single salary.
The disengaged workers say they were legitimately recruited, issued official appointment letters and posted to various departments across the university, only to be asked to surrender their identity cards and sign termination forms on July 16, 2026.
According to the affected staff, the trouble began when the federal government approved a waiver for the recruitment of 426 staff. The previous university management, however, issued appointment letters to 618 persons. Of these, 553 were captured on the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), but only 426 were eventually uploaded for salary payment, leaving 127 stranded.
“We resumed duties and were posted to various departments around April 2026, where we worked for about five months without receiving salaries,” the Concerned Staff of MOUAU stated.
The workers said they applied online after vacancies were advertised in October 2025, received appointment letters dated January 14, 2026 and underwent biometric capture on GIFMIS before resuming in April.
In July, the university paid one month’s salary to the 426 approved staff and asked the remaining 127 to stop coming to work.
One of the affected staff, Eze Ejike, described the situation as deeply unfair.
“We accepted the appointments in good faith, abandoned stable jobs, relocated our families, and devoted months of service to the university. We deserve fair treatment, transparency, and should be reinstated as bona fide staff,” the workers stated.
The disengaged staff are now calling on the federal government, the National Assembly, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and human rights organisations to investigate the matter and secure their reinstatement.
The university management, however, has defended the current Vice Chancellor, Prof. Ursula Ngozi Akanwa, saying she had no role in the recruitment saga.
The Head of Public Relations and Protocol, Anyaso Anyaso, said the entire recruitment exercise and GIFMIS capture were concluded before Prof. Akanwa assumed office on March 1, 2026.
“The Vice Chancellor has no access to the GIFMIS platform to either remove or change any name uploaded,” Anyaso said, dismissing claims that she substituted names on the payroll.
The university urged the public to rely only on official channels for accurate information and to disregard what it described as misinformation from mischief makers.
Digital Operations Manager at The Students Forum Nigeria.
