•Focus shifts to water supply, education, health and agriculture
Though it was the usual inter-faith prayer heralding a new working year and all was set to do so, but civil servants in the employ of the Oyo State government got more than they expected last Monday.
They went jubilating as Governor Abiola Ajimobi reeled out his plans for them in 2014 even as he doled out cash to reward good performance in the previous year.
With spontaneous rousing greeting, the Governor’s Office Car Park, venue of the prayer meeting, became a rally ground of a sort for the three hours that the programme lasted.
The Muslim and Christian clerics had opened the meeting with prayers. Traditional worshippers were also on ground to add colour to the event.
The governor, who spoke last, acknowledged that the civil servants have shown a good level of change for the better within the two and a half years that he took over the mantle of leadership of the state. He lauded their tenacity and encouraged them to keep changing for the better.
Ajimobi said they were capable of performing any task no matter how difficult it looks, pointing out that they have risen to the occasion in the various ways his administration has challenged them. He cited several examples, starting with the production of the beautiful programme for the event.
The governor called out an official of the state printing press who produced it, Mrs Margaret Olatoun Oluwafemi, lauded her and rewarded her with a cash gift of N250,000. All the workers jumped up in ecstasy and went into a frenzy of terrific clapping. He also gave the entire team another N250,000 for doing a good job.
So was the case for Mr. Oyelola Okunlola of the Office of the Surveyor-General that was singled out for dressing well. He was rewarded with N100,000 cash gift.
For beating his deadline to revamp the Asejire Waterworks in order to provide water for Ibadan residents within three months, the state’s water corporation got a gift of N5 million while all participants at the prayer meeting got a cash gift of N10 million.
Reeling out his plans, Ajimobi disclosed that a car assembly plant would be opened in Ibadan this year to help more civil servants buy brand new cars. He said, civil servants deserve the best, stressing that it was part of the reasons his administration went for the car assembly plant that would be delivering brand new cars at affordable prices to the masses. He further disclosed that he has taken delivery of a sample of the car which would be assembled by a Chinese firm.
He also promised to build more low cost houses for civil servants to enable them enjoy decent accommodation. The governor said once the first phase of the project is completed, they would enjoy the opportunity to come and see what is on offer and decide whether they want to participate or not.
He said he had ordered redevelopment of many governor’s guest houses located in many Government Reserved Areas (GRA) into luxury apartments for purchase and use by residents including civil servants.
The governor, who said all the cash gifts he gave to the workers were from his personal purse, emphasised his knack for quality, stressing the need for civil servants to always settle for the best.
“I am a man of quality. So I urge you never to settle for less but to always have positive mental attitude towards service. Not only that, you must also inculcate it into your children,’’ he said.
He also announced salary review which he said would be done by the end of the first quarter of the year and implemented without delay. Governor Ajimobi disclosed that a committee would be constituted this month to fashion out a wage that would be acceptable to the generality of the workers.
The governor, however, stressed the need for the workers to redouble their efforts towards improving on the internally-generated revenue of the state.
Earlier the Head of Service (HOS), Alhaji Tajudeen Aremu in his welcome address, highlighted the several ways the Governor Ajimobi administration has raised the quality of life and work environment of an average civil servant in the state, including training and retraining in Nigeria and overseas, free transportation, upward review of housing and car loans and regular promotion.
He urged the workers to redouble their efforts to consolidate on the gains of the past. He also urged them to shun crave for ill-gotten wealth and concentrate on how to leave good legacies. Aremu encouraged them to emulate great forebears such as the late Simeon Adebo and Tejumade Alakija as well as Chiefs Theophilus Akinyele and M. S. Adigun.
He described Ajimobi as a “rescue agent ordained by God to save the state from the holocaust and reign of terror.
He said: “To the generality of well-meaning people in this gathering, I like us to see Governor Abiola Ajimobi as a rescue agent ordained by God to save the state from holocaust and reign of terror.
According to Mike Murdock, you don’t know the value of a thing until you lose it. I want to admonish us to do away with sentiments and embrace a vessel that is sold out for peace, progress and prosperity that we are all witnessing in the state. Walter Benjamin said: ‘If the enemy wins, even the dead will not be safe.’ This is our state. We don’t have any other place to go that can be like Oyo State. Therefore, we must watch out for sustainability of the ongoing good works in the state. A word is sufficient for the wise”.
He also pointed out that “the current year is highly promising as government was poised to focus on total transformation in water supply, education, health and agriculture, having made remarkable success in the areas of environmental beautification and urban renewal and physical development in the previous year”.
He advised the workers to work harder to ensure the fulfillment of the goal.
In their sermons, Dr. Segun Olatunji, a pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God and Sheikh Ahmad Rufai, the Chief Imam of Government House Mosque, commended the commitment and dedication of the civil servants, urging them to continue to reciprocate government’s gesture by renewing their cooperation and support to the government.
Taking his text from Quran 2: 102-104, Rufai called for more cooperation between workers and the government, stressing that nothing will be impossible for parties that cooperate in discharging their duties. He illustrated with a fable of a hawk, rat, cow and tortoise who worked together for the benefit of all members of the group.
Rufai emphasised that workers must work excellently well to be able to thank God, adding that workers must also appreciate what the employer is doing well.
The Muslim cleric advised leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to keep advising the governor well and keep supporting the government. “Cooperation is the best. It brings benefits to all stakeholders.” He said.
Pastor Olatunji also spoke along the same line, calling on the government to continue to discharge its duties with the fear of God and civil servants working with diligence and honesty.
They also called for unity among members of the political class to ensure the success of the Ajimobi administration and for the state to continue to move forward.
