Rivers State Administrator Mandates Salary Verification for Health Workers, Sparks Concerns Over Healthcare Disruptions
Rivers State Administrator Mandates Salary Verification for Health Workers, Sparks Concerns Over Healthcare Disruption
Port Harcourt — Mr. Abas, the Sole Administrator of Rivers State, has directed all health workers in the Ikwerre Local Government Area to undergo a verification exercise at the council headquarters in Isiokpo to qualify for April salary payments. Non-compliance, he warned, will result in withheld wages.
The directive, however, has raised alarms over potential disruptions to critical healthcare services. An FCNN correspondent visiting a primary health facility in Igwuruta reported scenes of pregnant women in labor being attended to by overwhelmed staff, as health workers faced pressure to abandon duties for the verification process. Medical personnel at the facility expressed concerns that the blanket order could paralyze emergency care, particularly for vulnerable groups such as women in labor and children requiring urgent treatment.
Healthcare workers and observers have urged the state government to conduct the verification in staggered batches to minimize service interruptions. “Leaving hospitals understaffed during such an exercise is reckless. Lives hang in the balance,” one nurse stated anonymously.
The situation has also drawn broader warnings about escalating tensions in Rivers State, where political instability and communal strife remain high. Analysts fear that policies perceived as insensitive or disruptive could further destabilize the state’s fragile peace. “Service disruptions risk deepening public frustration,” a civil society advocate noted. “Authorities must prioritize both accountability and citizens’ welfare to avoid triggering unrest.”
As debates over the verification order intensify, stakeholders are calling for restraint and pragmatic solutions to balance administrative oversight with the uninterrupted delivery of essential healthcare services.
