Benue State Governor, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia, has directed the reinstatement of local government workers who were disengaged from the state payroll in 2011 and 2012.
The move, according to the government, is aimed at correcting past injustices and restoring fairness within the state’s public service, particularly at the grassroots level.
A circular issued by the Benue State Local Government Service Commission, dated October 10, 2025, and signed by Owoicho Odeh, Director of Administration and Finance, on behalf of the Commission’s Chairman, announced that a screening exercise would be conducted for all affected staff.
Addressed to all local government chairmen and Directors-General of Services and Administration, the circular stated that the exercise would cover only workers employed in 2011 and 2012 who were later removed from the payroll.
The Commission urged the affected workers to adhere strictly to the screening timetable and present all required documents, including letters of appointment and confirmation, last promotion letter, certificate of origin, birth certificate or age declaration, academic qualifications, valid means of identification, bank details, BVN, and NIN.
The screening will take place at the Local Government Service Commission Headquarters in Makurdi from October 20 to November 1, 2025, between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. daily.
Each local government will be attended to on designated days, with mop-up sessions scheduled for October 30 (Zone A), October 31 (Zone B), and November 1 (Zone C).
The Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) across the 23 local government areas has also been directed to mobilize affected workers for the exercise.
Governor Alia’s directive marks a major step toward addressing long-standing grievances of disengaged local government employees.
The initiative is expected to restore their employment status and reinforce public confidence in the fairness and transparency of the current administration.