A total of 127 staff members of the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike (MOUAU), in Abia State have appealed to President Bola Tinubu to intervene in their disengagement, claiming they were employed through a Federal Government-approved recruitment exercise before being directed to stop work.

The affected workers made the appeal during a press conference held on Monday in Umuahia.

Speaking on behalf of the group, Eze Ejike, alongside Nwaike Gospel and Roseline Okpechi, alleged that the university management compelled them to sign disengagement letters after they had worked for about five months without receiving any salary.

Ejike explained that they were among the 553 candidates recruited during a Federal Government-approved employment exercise conducted in October 2025. According to him, they successfully completed interviews, documentation, medical examinations, biometric capture conducted by officials from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, and every other required stage of the recruitment process before receiving their appointment letters in February 2026.

He said the workers resumed duty and were posted to different departments after the current Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ursula Akanwa, assumed office.

According to Ejike, Prof. Akanwa assured them that they had nothing to worry about because they had already been captured under the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System by officials from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

He added that many of them resigned from their previous jobs because they believed their appointments were legitimate.

Despite working for about five months without pay, Ejike alleged that the Vice-Chancellor later informed them that the employment waiver granted to the university covered only 426 positions, leaving 127 workers outside the approved quota.

He said while 426 employees eventually received their salaries, the remaining 127 were instructed to stop reporting for work.

According to him, the affected workers were later invited to another meeting where they were asked to surrender their identity cards and sign disengagement letters.

Ejike alleged that some of the workers signed the documents under pressure after security personnel reportedly prevented them from leaving the venue.

He further claimed that the remaining affected staff members were later invited to a hall and instructed to complete a form containing only their names, phone numbers, staff identification numbers and account details, without any explanation from the university management.

The workers appealed to President Tinubu, the Accountant-General of the Federation, the National Assembly, the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, relevant human rights organisations and other stakeholders to investigate the matter and facilitate their reinstatement.

They maintained that they lawfully secured their appointments, completed every required stage of the recruitment process and deserved justice.

Efforts to obtain a response from the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ursula Akanwa, were unsuccessful, as she said she was attending a meeting when contacted.