Joe Effiong, Uyo
Akwa Ibom State government has approved a release of the 2017/2018 promotion arrears for the over 6,000 workers in its employ who took part in the last promotion examinations.
The Head of Civil Service in the state, Mr Effiong Essien, who made the disclosure while talking to newsmen in Uyo on Wednesday, said Governor Udom Emmanuel’s decision to approve and facilitate such release was to give way for the 2019 promotion to be closely followed.
Governor Emmanuel had told the press in Uyo on Tuesday that his initial hard-starting on the government-worker relationship was due to huge debt arrears and backlog of entitlements of civil servants inherited from the previous administration.
The Head of Service said the governor had also approved the release of funds for the scheduling of the pre-promotion examination seminar and subsequent conduct of the Administrative and Professional Officers Compulsory Class Examination (APOCE) and other promotion formalities.
Essien described the governor’s gesture as another demonstration of his usual sincere concern for workers and acknowledged with appreciation, that in addition to regular payment of salaries and gratuities, the state government is also constructing affordable houses for workers at two housing estates located at Ikot Ntuen Nsit in Nsit Ibom LGA along Abak Road and Ikpedip Ibiono /Itak Ikono, along Uyo Ikot Ekpene Road, to ensure that public servants owned their houses on a rent-to-own basis.
He, on behalf of the entire workers, therefore, extended his warm felicitations to the governor as the state marked the 32nd anniversary of its creation which witnessed the inauguration of various life-touching projects by the vice president, Prof Yemi Osinbajo.
He thanked the governor for his continued concern for the workers and congratulated the benefiting workers as they migrated to their next grade levels.
Essien, however, charged the elevated workers to be dedicated to duties to reciprocate the governor’s kind gesture and assured the governor of the continued support of the workers to enable him to accomplish his Completion Agenda.