The entire workforce in Osun State has scored the state governor, Ademola Adeleke, very high in the area of workers’ welfare, noting that the governor has alleviated their suffering of the past and boosted their morale.
In a carnival-like ceremony at the Governor’s office on Thursday, the workers showed their gratitude to Governor Adeleke by conferring an award of the ‘Most Humane Governor of the Year’ on him, saying that Adeleke performed well in all sectors of the state since inception of office.
The workers in their hundreds, led by Lasun Oladele, the Chairman of the Joint Negotiating Council, presented the award to the governor, while reeling out some of the achievements of Adeleke which he said warranted the honour.
Oladele said the governor has never owed worker and has been paying salary and pension arrears as and when due.
The Head of Service, Ayanleye Aina said the event was not just an award but that the giving out of another Two Billion, Nine Hundred Million naira pension bond made the gathering a unique one.
Addressing Adeleke, Aina said, “Your Excellency, the entire workforce of Osun State and retirees have a lot to celebrate today as we rejoice with you on the conferment of this well-deserved award by the Labour Leaders in the state on you.
“Experience has shown very clearly that there is a wide gap between campaign promises and the actual delivery of dividends of democracy. The case of our amiable Governor is a radical departure from this position as workers and retirees have continued to benefit from the kindness of the Governor. You indeed displayed great character and integrity by fulfilling your campaign promises to the workers and pensioners in the state in many areas:
“Prior to the advent of your administration in the state, senior workers were owed several months of unpaid half salaries, a situation that came to the national limelight. Believing that governance is a continuum, your administration has been consistently offsetting these backlog of salary and pension arrears. As we speak, four months arrears have been paid to date
“Your administration cash-backed arrears of promotions from the previous administrations which were in millions of naira
“You broke the age long jinx of aberration of Coordinating Directors as career heads of MDAs by appointing qualified civil servants as Permanent Secretaries, an action that brought life back to the entire Civil Service. You have said this is a continuous exercise
“You have consistently approved release of fund for officers to embark on professional training to enhance their performances at work
“You have ensured regular and consistent payment of full salaries and pension without hindrance.
“You recently granted approval for conduct of year 2023 promotion for all categories of qualified workers across the entire gamut of the public service. As we speak, the enabling circular has been issued by the Civil Service Commission
“You increased the monthly release of fund for the payment of gratuities for retirees at the State level by 100%, that is, from N50m to N100m.
“You increased the monthly release of fund for the new pension scheme from N175m to N350m, that is, by 100%.At the local government level, it was increased to N400m.
“Recently, you graciously approved the payment of N15,000 palliative to each worker and N10,000 to each retiree beginning from this month to cushion the effect of petroleum subsidy removal.”
Aina added, “There is no further testimony to your benevolence sir as today your Excellency is set to release bonds worth billions of naira to retirees under the new pension scheme to make life more bearable for them. All of these have been achieved through prudent fiscal policy that have not in any way affected the capital expenditure of government.
“Given all these, I wish to remind all public servants of the popular adage that “to whom much is given, much is expected. I encourage us to re-dedicate ourselves to the ideals of the Service so as to enhance our productivity, efficiency and capacity in the discharge of our official duties. This is the only way we can really appreciate the kind gestures of our Governor towards us,” he maintained.
Delivering his speech, Governor Adeleke assured Osun people of sustained pursuit of the progress of the state, saying he would continue to give priority to the welfare of workers in the state.
“Today, I am again deeply overwhelmed by the show of love and support from great Osun workers and retirees. The outpouring of affection for me and my team has further rekindled my faith in our five point agenda for which workers’ welfare is number one.
“Some months ago, the Nigeria Union of Pensioners conferred on me the award of the most workers’ friendly governor. I was told that was the first time the union would grant such honour to a serving Governor. Here we are today again with the entire workforce of the public service acknowledging our modest contributions to the development of our dear state.
“The positive testimonies from the various unions and labour leaders attested to the correctness of our original thinking when running for the state governorship. We had analyzed the political space and concluded then that the smartest way to grow Osun is workers welfare. We accept and adopt the reality that human capital is a strong foundation for integrated development of the state.
“We had also spotted the nexus between formal and informal workers in the state. Easing the challenges of the public service has the tendency to uplift the economic well being of the informal sector. These analyses were responsible for placing workers’ welfare as number one priority in our governance agenda.
“We are vindicated today as the workforce has validated our approach to governance. This vindication has challenged our team to remain focussed and engaged in our relentless drive for new life for our people. I long to expand our capacity to meet the needs of the people, to deploy human development as a tool for societal transformation. We will further innovate as a government to meet workers at the point of their needs.
“I therefore humbly accept this award as “The Most Humane Governor of the Year”. Dear workers and stakeholders, I cherish this honour done to me and my team. You have further fired our existing strong interest in welfare issues for both serving and retired members of the workforce.
“It is in this direction that I have further approved the release of another tranche of bonds totaling Two Billion , Nine Hundred and Twenty Five Million, Three Hundred and Thirty Two Thousand, Eight Hundred and Thirty Five kobo (N2,925,332,835.75),” Adeleke said.
