Rivers State Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have appealed to Governor Siminalayi Fubara to implement the Court of Appeal judgment ordering the payment of outstanding salaries and allowances owed staff of the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education (IAUE) Demonstration Schools, Port Harcourt.
The organisations made the appeal in a statement signed by their Chairman, Enefaа Gorgewill, and Publicity Secretary, Tuka Loanye, expressing concern over the continued hardship faced by the affected workers whose salaries have allegedly been withheld since February 2016.
They said the Court of Appeal, sitting in Port Harcourt, on May 18, 2026, dismissed an appeal filed by the Rivers State Government in suit No. CA/PH/341/2022, challenging an earlier National Industrial Court judgment which affirmed the workers as valid employees of the university.
According to the CSOs, the appellate court directed the state government to pay all outstanding salaries, allowances and other entitlements from the date of the stoppage until full compliance with its order.
The organisations described the judgment as final and binding on all parties, urging the governor to issue an executive directive for its immediate implementation.
They called for the immediate reinstatement of the affected staff, restoration of their seniority and other entitlements, as well as the computation and payment of all outstanding salaries from February 2016.
The CSOs also urged the university management and the Ministry of Justice to ensure seamless implementation of the judgment without further bureaucratic delays.
They further called on the state government to extend the same consideration to teachers in other demonstration schools across Rivers State, citing similarities in their circumstances.
While acknowledging what they described as Governor Fubara’s commitment to workers’ welfare and social justice, the organisations said his intervention would help end the decade-long hardship suffered by the affected teachers.
They maintained that the matter could be resolved peacefully through compliance with the court judgment, without confrontation.
