Fresh calls have gone to the federal and state governments to prioritize job creation. This follows reports of the murder, last week, of a graduate job seeker near in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
The police recovered the body of 26-year-old Philosophy graduate of University of Uyo, Miss Iniubong Umoren, from a shallow grave where a fake job provider and serial rapist, Mr. Uduak Akpan, had buried it.
Umoren had responded to a job invitation only to be raped and subsequently killed and buried.
The public outrage calls for immediate action by Akwa Ibom State government to forestall rising desperation of youths for gainful employment by prioritizing projects for job creation rather than investing in bogus religious worship centers with public funds.
A statement by the Civil Liberty Organisation (CLO) on Tuesday, signed by the state chairman, Otuekong Franklin Isong and Secretary, Comrade (Barr.) Christopher Ekpo, described the incident as an indictment of the Akwa Ibom State Government in the area of job creation.
“…CLO views the appalling incident as an indictment on the Government of Akwa Ibom State in the area of job creation for the teeming unemployed youth of Akwa Ibom State in the face of high cost of living.”
According to the CLO, the outrageous murder of Miss Umoren points again to moral decadence and erosion of social values even in the face of the proliferation of religious houses in Akwa Ibom, some built by the State government with public funds.
“CLO calls on Governor Udom Emmanuel to prioritize the provision of employment opportunities and embark on projects aimed at the sustainable economic empowerment of the people of Akwa Ibom State in the remaining years of his administration.” The press statement added.
Incidentally, the victim had days before her death posted her desperate need for a job on social media as well as criticized the wanton spending of billions of public funds by Gov. Udom administration on worship centers rather than job creation. Many Akwa Ibomites and non-indigene have condemned the worship edifice project as a misplaced priority.
For the Executive Director of Policy Alert, Mr. Tijah-Bolton Akpan, the sad end of Miss Umoren is a result of prevailing economic injustice in the state.
“The young lady … is actually a victim of economic injustice that is very glaring in our society. When you look at the rate of unemployment for instance, Akwa Ibom state in this same quarter last year had about 45.2 % unemployment rate as published by the National Bureau of Statistics. That is the 2nd highest in the country. That tells you something about the level of unemployment and the level of poverty, especially among young people who have actually gone to school and have degrees.” My Akpan said.
Secretary to State Government, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem, remarked in 2019 that if a political group required a boastful attendance of supporters on a Monday morning, mere t-shirts and a promise of an undisclosed amount will get tens of thousands of desperate unemployed or underemployed youths and women within an hour.
Pathetic as this is for a well-informed populace like Akwa Ibomites, it has not changed since 2019 when the SSG made the remark.
Besides, like in most cities Uyo is flooded with roadside adverts or flyers promising mouth-watering employment opportunities with only phone numbers as contacts.
Over the weekend as news of Iniubong Umoren’s murder circulated on social media, another female job seeker, Ofonime Effiong, received an SMS inviting her for an interview on Tuesday (today).
Ofonime, an accounting graduate and former bank staff expressed fears about the hotel employment interview as the hotel was not well-known to her. The apprehension could be unjustified but the psychological impact of the Umoren tragedy is real.
“Yes, people should be careful about the opportunities they see out there… we could drum that into the ears of young people as much as we can, but that does not take away the fact that there is desperation in the land. There’s hunger in the land, there is unemployment in the land. Yet resources keep being channeled into ventures that do not go anywhere to make a dent on unemployment. Billions are being spent on building churches, building skyscrapers and so on that do not have a direct correlation with the reduction of poverty and the reduction of unemployment in our society. These are the issues.” Mr. Akpan of Policy Alert warned.
The Executive Director, Foundation for Civic Education, Human Rights and Development Advancement (FoCEHRaDA), Bar. Clifford Thomas told The New Diplomat that phantom job vacancies were not peculiar to Akwa Ibom but lamented the limit the security agency like police could go.
“Phantom job vacancies exist everywhere in Uyo. They invite people to ‘unscrupulous’ buildings. It’s been there not that we do not bring these things to the attention of the police. The police have not found it very relevant to their work. In some instances, the police have had to react. But they believe these are civil matters. The police cannot come in until a crime is suspected to have been committed or would be committed. It’s now that it has become a criminal offence that police are running around taking such information seriously. Members of the public have been giving such numbers to the police, and they do not have the facility to start work — the fuel, vehicle repairs and all that. It’s not been easy on the police,” said Barr. Thomas.
Akwa Ibom State Government, as expected condemned the killing of youthful Umoren through the Information Commissioner, Comrade Ini Ememobong:
“We condemn in totality the gruesome acts that led to the loss of the life of an innocent young woman, whose sincere desire was to earn a decent living. Our state must remain a safe location for all peace loving and law-abiding citizens at all times. We commiserate with the deceased family on this very painful loss and pray God to comfort them.”
A human rights organization, COMPPART Foundation for Justice and Peace Building spokesperson Saviour Akpan Esq., decried the rot in the system and its ripple effect on the economy, security and judicial system.
“The sudden killing of the young girl in the course of looking for a job is as a result of the systemic failures that we have in Nigeria, whereby our educational system does not guarantee you expected social security. …. Our government is completely a failure, why? Irrespective of the fact that the guy murdered the girl, our law says he should not be detained longer than necessary and currently the judiciary is on strike. All the courts in Nigeria are on strike and the position of the law is that either you arraign him before a court of competent jurisdiction whereby we can be able to have justice or you release him on bail. The frustration would be that consequent upon the fact that the court is on strike the police cannot keep him perpetually, he’ll be entitled to bail.”
According to COMPPART, the culprit on administrative bail will be adding salt to the injury of the victim’s family. On compensation of the family, Saviour Akpan said it is unfortunate there is no restitution for crime victims in Nigeria, especially in Akwa Ibom State.
“Akwa Ibom State refuses to have administration of criminal justice law which is supposed to be a domesticated version of administration of justice act at the federal level. What is only there is left for the police to complete their investigation and sentence accordingly. But now which of the court is going to be arraigned when the courts are on strike.”
Nigerians are bitter that governors are insensitive to the judiciary strike as judiciary workers are equally fighting for their right — financial autonomy.
Governors again have been urged to use their huge security votes for tangible security investments. In Akwa Ibom, there are questions on the whereabouts of security cameras installed at the state borders during 2020 COVID-19 Lockdown.
“Nobody has asked for the CCTV footage because those cameras are not there! There should be some accountability for security investment, there should be some accountability in poverty reduction and fighting unemployment in the state” Mr. Tijah-Bolton Akpan queried.
As a positive way forward, there is a clarion call for Governor Udom Emmanuel to assent to the Akwa Ibom Youth Development Fund law which was passed by the last (7th) Assembly of Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly. The Akwa Ibom Youth Development Fund Bill has sought to protect Akwa Ibom youths like late Iniubong Umoren with funds young people can access and invest in their ideas.
“There are a lot of brilliant, creative and dynamic young people in this state. Thousands of them with degrees and sometimes with multiple degrees roaming the streets. They have brilliant ideas but there is no funding for their ideas. Governments are supposed to stand in the gap and provide needed funding to access and support their brilliant ideas.” Tijah-Bolton Akpan noted.
