‘Applicant Was Rude’ – Soludo Defends Commissioner’s Action

Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra State has defended the Commissioner for Education, Prof Ngozi Chuma-Udeh, over her recent outburst.

Naija News earlier reported that Chuma-Udeh was caught on tape insulting a job applicant who was seeking clarification about the teacher’s recruitment exercise held last Saturday in the state.

In a voice note which has gone rival, the commissioner slammed the applicant and her colleagues for their behaviour during the recruitment exercise.

Chuma-Udeh described the female applicant as a hooligan and idiot who should not dream to be a teacher or be in the education sector.

Reacting to the development, Governor Soludo stated that the applicant was rude to the commissioner during the phone call and also resorted to abuse.

Soludo, in a statement on Tuesday by his spokesman, Christian Aburime, said the commissioner’s remarks were provoked by the language of the said applicant.

The governor, however, said that commissioners as public officers ought not to react in a rash manner, adding that he remains committed to the well-being of the people of Anambra.

The statement reads: “While the applicants at the Nsugbe Center sat for and ended their own examination at about 4:00 pm, those at the Unizik Center ended theirs by 3:30 pm, with some candidates joining them from the IDK learning Center, Awka.

“Nnewi candidates did not commence their examination at the appropriate time owing to all manner of inappropriate conduct exhibited by some of the applicants. Notwithstanding, they were eventually allowed to write the examination late in the evening.

“In respect to the video making the rounds on the social media space, members of the public need to be aware that it was an edited excerpt from a private phone conversation by an applicant who obviously failed the examination and out of frustration resorted to cursing and abusing the Governor of Anambra State, Prof. Chukwuma Charles Soludo, and the Commissioner for Education.

“The Commissioner’s comments were as a result of the uncouth language used by the applicant against the person of the Governor of Anambra State and other unprintable words hurled at the Commissioner.

“As public officers operating in the public space, the Commissioner has apologised for her inappropriate choice of words used in the said voice note.

“However, it is pertinent to reiterate that Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo remains committed to the well-being of Ndi Anambra and will not be distracted in availing deserving qualified teachers the opportunity to serve Anambra State and contribute in shaping the future of our children.”