Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, has lifted the suspension of the Commissioner for Works (Highways and Urban Roads), Reuben Izeze, but directed him to wait until 10 weeks after his suspension before returning to office.
Oborevwori announced the decision on Tuesday at the swearing-in of the Auditor-General and members of the governing councils of the University of Delta, Southern Delta University and Dennis Osadebay University at Unity Hall, Government House, Asaba.
The governor said he decided to reconsider Izeze’s suspension after the commissioner appealed for forgiveness and agreed to publicly address the circumstances surrounding his suspension.
Oborevwori said Izeze sent him a message on Tuesday morning asking him to forgive him and requesting that the governor tell the public that he had just returned from the correctional facility.
“Let me talk for a minute about one commissioner who was suspended. He sent me a message this morning that I should forgive him,” the governor said.
Oborevwori, however, stressed that public officials must conduct themselves responsibly and that no government official was above the law.
He said Izeze’s decision to appeal and appear before the public despite being under suspension influenced his decision to lift the suspension.
“But because you have pleaded and really removed that shame and you came to face the public, even as people know that you are under suspension, from where you were suspended is not yet two months,” he said.
The governor added, “But I will say that when it completes 10 weeks from the day of your suspension, you can resume work.”
Izeze was suspended indefinitely on August 10 following allegations linking him to the assault of the Governor’s Senior Special Assistant on Protocol, Simon Mudi, popularly known as Temple.
The alleged incident occurred during an All Progressives Congress stakeholders’ meeting at the Petroleum Training Institute, Effurun.
The state government had said the suspension would enable security agencies to investigate the allegations without interference.
Izeze was also arraigned before a Delta State High Court sitting in Effurun over the alleged assault and was remanded at the Nigerian Correctional Service facility in Okere, Warri, pending further proceedings.
During his time in custody, the commissioner reportedly drew attention to the plight of inmates who remained in detention because they could not pay fines imposed by courts as alternatives to prison terms.
His intervention led FOOSTODEY, an organisation linked to the “UKODO NA TẸVWẸ” welfare initiative, to pay fines reportedly totalling N9.77m for 20 inmates.
Fifteen of the beneficiaries were initially released, while the release of five others was delayed because the relevant court was on break.
The intervention generated public attention, coming while Izeze was himself facing legal proceedings and remained suspended from office.
The suspension also prompted appeals from political groups and other stakeholders who urged the governor to reconsider the decision.
With the latest directive, Izeze’s suspension has been lifted, but his return to the Works Ministry will only take effect after the 10 weeks specified by the governor.
The development brings an administrative timeline to the commissioner’s return, while the allegations arising from the Effurun incident remain subject to due process.
