From Priscilla Ediare, Ado-Ekiti
The Social Democratic Party (SDP) governorship candidate and former Ekiti State governor, Asiwaju Segun Oni, has promised a better life for government workers and pensioners in the state, if he should emerge as winner in the June 18 Ekiti governorship election.
“I want the workers and pensioners to take me for my words. After my inauguration in October this year, be bold enough to confront me with these promises. I did it before during my first administration.
“I treated the workers like kings. I did not allow the pensioners to suffer. I know the importance of regular payment of salaries to the state economy,” he said.
“I heard that the All Progressives Congress (APC) had been saying that we are no longer in oil boom period, and it is no longer possible to meet the workers’ needs and that Segun Oni has been deceiving them.
“A former administration in one of the states in the South West had been telling the workers no money, no money but when another political party took over power, not only the workers got their salaries regularly before end of the month, but were paid the 13th month salary every year. Things have changed for better for workers in that state. Let me ask, ” where has the allocations of that state been kept before now?
“The same scenario is playing out in Ekiti with the Fayemi administration. The state’s monthly allocation is a commonwealth of Ekiti people, not for a few individuals, it should be used to develop the people and the state. During my first administration, I used it to develop the people and the state, and still left N10B and two months allocations and security votes in the government coffers when I left the government.”
The SDP candidate, who disclosed this to the Ekiti Build Back Better (EBBB), a pro-Segun Oni group, during a chat at Ifaki-Ekiti at the weekend, assured the workers saying, “if you give me your bloc vote to win the election, irregular payment of salaries, denial of promotion or promotion without financial backing will become a thing of the past in Ekiti.”
According to a press statement made available to journalists by the group’s spokesman, Idowu Adelusi, in Ado-Ekiti on Monday, Oni decried the denial of workers the reward for their labour, asking “why should any government want to refuse the retirees their gratuities and monthly pensions, having expended the productive period of their lives to serve the state?
“Why should these aged people be made to suffer as if we will not one day become retirees?”
The former governor said it was appalling to hear that government was owing the workers or had denied or delayed their promotions or have promoted them without financial backing. Somebody on level 14 will still be collecting level 10 salary.
“I was even told that the APC government, under Fayemi, has not paid the workers their leave and Christmas bonuses since 2019, apart from the fraudulent promotions and some unpaid months salaries. This is very unfair.
“My government will obey the court judgement to reinstate the workers of the Ekiti State University sacked by the Fayemi-led administration. I will also set up a panel to review unfair treatments done to workers by the administration.
“During my first administration, I did not see regular payment of workers’ salaries as an achievement, but a normal and necessary thing to do, as every worker is entitled to his or her salary at the end of every month.
“I paid all arrears of gratuities and pensions of retirees from 1993 in the old Ondo State to the time I became the governor. I paid over N9 billion without borrowing a kobo.
“I instituted regular payment of retirees pensions and gratuities within 90 days of retirement and regular payment of pensions.
“I did not borrow a dime from anywhere throughout my tenure to run the government, despite numerous and outstanding projects I executed.
“Don’t give your votes to Biodun Oyebanji, the APC candidate; he would be a continuity of repressive Fayemi regime.
“Don’t allow anybody to collect your voter’s cards from you; don’t succumb to intimidation and harassment from anybody, be it government officials or labour leaders.
“The decision to free yourselves from slavery is in your hands,” he admonished.