Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde has issued a 4-week ultimatum for the conversion of ad-hoc staff in the service of the 33 local government areas in the state to permanent workers.
The governor gave the directive on Wednesday at the official commissioning of the newly-built Local Government House and Staff Training School in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
He said the decision was taken to bridge the gap in the workforce at the local government level.
Makinde further maintained that due process must be followed for the employment within the four weeks.
He assured that his administration would continue to seek innovative ways to support and collaborate with local government authorities for the benefits of the citizens in order to actualise his vision for the state.
Makinde said, “We will continue to work with the local government so that our vision at the state level can also be sold to the local government administrators. When there is synergy, we can achieve more.”
The governor added that when he came on board in 2019, he met a local government system that owed salaries, pensions and gratuities.
He said, “For primary school teachers, their leave bonuses were last paid in 2017. The primary schools, Primary Health Centres (PHCs) and other things were in a bad shape. But we have paid the primary school teachers their leave bonus for 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.
“So, we had to figure out a way of reducing this deficit and we won’t play games with anybody because they are our own people. We insisted that first line items must be drawn against the LG account.
“It was a home-grown way of ensuring that outstanding pension and gratuities are paid. We have paid backlogs of over N18 billion in pension and we have also paid over N15 billion gratuities to retirees,” Makinde said.
He added that his administration had collaborated with the local government councils to upgrade 209 and equip 264 PHCs and complete about 60 model schools.
He stressed further that his administration had, in conjunction with local government authorities, constructed and renovated hundreds of primary school classrooms through the Oyo State SUBEB intervention project.
Makinde added that the first set of about 40km of roads in Ibadan were commissioned in July with about 60km to go in this first set. “When we leave Ibadan, we will go to other zones.
“So, rest assured we will continue to seek innovative ways to collaborate with the local government administration to the benefit of our people.”
According to the governor, the newly-built complex will provide a conducive environment for the local government staff and also enhance their productivity.
He also promised that facilities within the State Secretariat would be renovated and transformed before the expiration of his administration in 2027.
Speaking, the Commissioner for Land, Housings and Urban Development, Mr Williams Akin-Funmilayo, described the new complex as a monumental achievement.
He appreciated Governor Makinde for his insightful leadership in guiding the Local Government Service Commission and the Local Government Pension Board.
National President, National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Comrade Ambali Olatunji, represented by vice-president (South-West Caucus), Comrade Babalola Abimbola commended Governor Makinde for prioritising the welfare of local government staff.
The project consultant, Mr Olalekan Akingbade, who spoke on behalf of the University of Ibadan Ventures, described the newly-commissioned LG House as a masterpiece with state-of-the-art equipment.
Earlier, Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Ademola Ojo, said the edifices are the first in the history of Oyo State and Nigeria.
He added that the Governor Makinde administration has implemented unprecedented worker-friendly policies in the state while urging the staff to imbibe good maintenance culture of the facilities.
