Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde has flagged off the construction of an Ultra-Modern Secretariat and Office Complex for Local Government Service Commission and Local Government Staff Pension Board.
Attack the flag off ceremony held at the state Secretariat, Engr Makinde said,the initiative was conceived by the Permanent Secretary, Local Government Service Commission. The Governor said, “when the Permanent Secretary came to me,he said this was what he intended to do, and after our discussion, I went round the Secretariat and tried to see for myself where were the new buildings and the only one I saw was the solid minerals building and I said why can’t we lay a new foundation to start a,campaign of regenerating the Secretariat.”
“Oyo State was lucky to have the first modern Secretariat in the past and several years later, it is still the structures we kept painting on yhe outer surface without renovation.”
Makinde revealed that his administration had so far released the sum of N15 Million to each Ministry for renovation of their various offices. He said he was glad that the Secretariat is having a new look, not only from the outside but from the inside. Makinde added that renovation work was also going on at the Governor’s Office.
Makinde, however, assured that in about eleven months, we would be coming back to commission the edifice. He thanked the chairmen and chairpersons of Local Government and Local Council Development Areas because everybody came together to pitch into it and by that your singular action, we were able to raise substantial amount that is needed for the construction of the structure.
Makinde emphatically asked members of the opposition to keep quiet. He said when the plan for the project was finalised, “some people went out and said we were taking money from the Local Government and all of that, I think they should shut up permanently for the next eleven months.”
Delivering his address, the Chairman Oyo State Local Government Service Commission and Local Government Staff Pension Board, Hon Aderemi Ayodele expressed his profound appreciation to Governor Makinde for granting the board approval to commence work on the site, which is long overdue. He added that the Commission and Pension Board had been tenants in the Water Corporation Building for about four decades now, without any administration deeming it fit to construct a permanent, Secretariat for the two agencies.
Hon Ayodele said about two thousand workers have so far been trained by the Commission to enhance their efficiency in service delivery. He said, “monthly release,of Two Hundred and Seventy-four Million Naira (N274M) only for the payment of gratuities of retired primary school teachers and Local Government Staff, as well as payment of 100% monthly pensions to our senior citizens, as against payment in percentages by the immediate-past administration.”
“To this end, a,sum of N3.5 had been paid tso far as gratuity to retirees by this administration in the last seven months by courtesy of the magnanimity of our dear Governor.”
In his goodwill message, the Secretary, Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Oyo State Council, Comrade Olusegun Abatan said the gesture of having a befitting Secretariat complex for Local Government Service Commission and Local Government Staff Pension Boards is apt at this moment.