ALGON backs Bayelsa Govt. on civil service Reforms
ALGON backs Bayelsa Govt on civil service reforms
Reform
By Christian Ogbonna
Yenagoa, April 26, 2018 (NAN)The Bayelsa Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) on Thursday said the on-going civil service reforms by the state government would sanitising the system.
Mr Wisdom Fafi, the state Chairman of the association, said this at a news conference in Yenagoa by Bayelsa Ministry of Information and the chairmen of the eight local governments in the state.
According to Fafi, the briefing was aimed at reviewing the achievements of the state civil service reforms at the local government level.
He said that it was also to enlighten the public on the need to develop and improve the well-being of workers at the grassroots.
He pledged that workers in the state would not only support the government, but ready to deploy their ingenuity to fight against any form of fraud at the local government level.
He said the on-going reform was a welcome development since some of local governments in the state were not capable to pay workers, but with the reforms,“ staff in the areas can get their salaries and as at when due.”
Fafi, also Chairman of Kolokumo/Opokuma Local Government, said that the reforms started in the local government in 2016, stressing that salary of primary school workers in the area was over N59 million, but now N37 million.
“We came into power at time of recession in 2016 and that was when this reform started.
“Then in Kolokumo/Opokuma Local Government, where I am serving as the Chairman, the salary of the primary school was over N59 million.
“The total LGA staff wage bill was about N50 million in 2016, but the reform had bought it to this level; staff wage bill now is about N40 million,” he said.
On Primary healthcare delivery, Prof. Ebitimitula Etebu, the state Commissioner for Health, commended the reforms, saying that it had help the state government to train and retrain the primary health workers.
“There are no more over staffing at the LGAs, health facilities have improved in all most the local councils, I urge the chairmen to continue to work hard to move the state forward.”
Mr Daniel Markson-Iworiso, the state Commissioner for Information, urged the chairmen to retain the number of workers that they could be able to pay their salaries.
“The state government has resolved that the councils will be paying a certain percentage to the education fund to train the primary health workers.
“To everyone in Bayelsa, there is need to support the government and save it from total collapse because government is determine to sustain the on-going reforms. (NAN)
OOC/GOM/TA
Edited by Gregory Mmaduakolam/Tajudeen Atitebi