From Laide Raheem, Abeokuta
Special Assistants that served in the administration of former Ogun State Governor Senator Ibikunle Amosun have issued an appeal to Governor Dapo Abiodun to pay their outstanding severance allowances.
The Special Assistants who served between 2015 and 2019 made the appeal in a letter dated August 5 and addressed to the incumbent governor.
The letter jointly signed by Olusola Balogun, Opeyemi Soyombo and Lanre Adeagbo, on behalf of others, was also copied to the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly, Commissioner for Finance, Accountant-General and the Permanent Secretary, Governor’s Office, a copy made available to Daily Sun on Wednesday, in Abeokuta, Ogun state capital.
They pleaded with the governor to offset the severance allowances so as to encourage sacrificial service to the good people of the state by public officeholders.
In the letter, Amosun’s former aides commended the governor for his giant strides in bringing development to the state.
They noted that the governor has displayed rare gestures which confirmed his human kindness.
The letter reads:
‘We wish to place on record our appreciation of your giant strides since May 29, 2019.
‘In particular, we note the construction of the all-important Abeokuta-Sagamu Interchange road, among other massive construction projects going on across the state.
‘No one can ignore the fact that you not only retained the 2,000 workers employed by the previous administration but went ahead to pay them nine-month salaries, which pleasantly surpassed expectations of the citizens of Ogun State. The rare gesture confirms your human kindness.
‘We, the undersigned, representatives of Special Assistants to the Governor who served Ogun State Government between the years 2015 and 2019, earnestly appeal to Your Excellency to pay our Severance Allowance.
‘Many of them resigned from their jobs so as to serve the state. As the current helmsman, you would have taken cognisance of our plight during the four years of our faithful and selfless service. As we noted in our earlier letter on the subject matter, dated 6th June 2019, we humbly appeal to Your Excellency to kindly offset the severance in order to encourage sacrificial service to the good people of Ogun State by public officeholders.
‘Once more, we pray for divine health and God’s guidance, as we wish you a successful tenure.’