Ifeoma Aniebo Rhodes-Vivour is the wife of the Lagos State Labour Party governorship candidate in the 2023 general elections, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour popularly known as GRV. Weeks after the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal of the LP governorship candidate against the election of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, facts have emerged show how the wife of Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour owed one of her employees called Chika Jones arrears of salaries and agreed bonuses.
Trouble started for Ify Aniebo Rhodes-Vivour when the said former employee in a series of tweets, narrated a story of unpaid dues and a back and forth with Mrs. Rhodes Vivour, with the outstanding amount owed being £778 as at the time the wife of Gbadebo decided she was not going to pay any further amount to Chika Jones.
The duo of Chika Jones and Ify Aniebo started working together around 2019 according to Mr. Jones. He recounts that irregular payment of agreed salaries was a constant feature all through the period he was employed by Ify Aniebo. Chika Jones backed up these claims with evidences of various chats between him and his employer where he always appears to be reminding/requesting her to pay for services already offered.
In the screenshot of the chats shared by Chika Jones, Ify Aniebo always gave one excuse or the other for not being able to pay but sometimes makes certain payments. However, the beginning of the end started in December 2021 when Chika, after completing a project to the satisfaction and admiration of his employer, started following up to get Ify Aniebo pay up his outstanding money. Ify was citing account issues and illness at various times and repeatedly promised to pay the amount which stood at £778.
After giving her some space, Chika Jones around May 2022, reached out to Ify again to pay up citing urgent need of the funds. However, Mrs. Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour who around that period was in the running to become the First Lady of Lagos State following her husbands governorship ambition, accused Mr. Chika Jones of bombarding her with request messages and after a moment of grandstanding categorically refused to pay him any further money while challenging him to do his worst.
The dispute took a dramatic turn as the aspiring First Lady told Mr. Chika Jones that she is a bridge that shouldn’t have dared to burn, making sure to assert her superiority in class. Chika Jones at that point was ready for any drama and attempted to involve Ify’s husband, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour but according to him received no response. Chika Jones said that he decided to hold his peace during the governorship election campaigns of Mr. Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour who won the Labour Party governorship ticket in Lagos State.
As the story went viral, the embattled Ify Aniebo Rhodes-Vivour tried to play down the story in a post on X (formerly twitter) where she said, “I am aware of the statements made by a former staff engaged to render services to Afroscientric. Rest assured, I take this matter seriously and I’m actively addressing it to ensure a timely resolution.” Hours later, her husband, Mr. Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour indicated that the issue has been resolved and that Chika Jones had gotten his owed money.
X users however had their say with many accusing the couple of wickedness in their refusal to pay Mr. Chika Jones his earned pay. Some wondered if that was a pointer to how Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour would have treated civil servants in Lagos if he had won the governorship election in Lagos State. Other users were less impressed with the belated payment by GRV and stated that the payment was made simply because of the wide public interest it generated.