…From Dele Ogunyemi, Ibadan…
Civil servants in Oyo State who attended the annual inter-faith prayer service heralding the New Year on Monday went into frenzy as Governor Isiaq Abiola Ajimobi doled out cash gifts totaling N15.6 million to different categories of workers.
The workers had converged at the Car Park of the Governor’s Office to attend the annual prayer service formally marking the beginning of the work for 2014.
Governor Ajimobi, who was apparently elated at the conduct of the civil servants, their proper dressing, as well as their dedication and commitment to duty in the past year, said they deserved to be compensated.
Consequently, he announced the donation of N10 million to all the civil servants who turned up for the prayer service, while all the workers of the State Water Corporation were given N5 million for beating the time frame given to them to complete the rehabilitation of the Asejire Waterworks, a development which had resulted in regular water supply within Ibadan and its environs, 17 years after the project had been abandoned.
Also, an official of the State Printing Press, Mrs. Margaret Olatoun Oluwafemi, was rewarded with the sum of N250,000, while other staffers of the press were also given N250,000 for the quality of the printing of the programme for the prayer service.
Besides, another civil servant, Mr. Oyelola Okunlola, of the Office of the Surveyor-General of the State got the sum of N100,000 for appearing well-dressed at the occasion.
The governor, who said that all the donations were from his personal purse, emphasized 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.
On the proposed salary review, 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.
Governor Ajimobi, however, stressed the need for the workers to redouble their efforts towards improving on the internally-generated revenue of the state.
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.
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.