As workers in Kwara State mark this year’s Workers’ Day, the state Governor, Dr. Abdulfatah Ahmed, has said that his administration will continue to identify innovative ways of meeting its commitments to them.
Ahmed, who gave this commitment at this year’s May Day celebration held at the Metropolitan Square in Ilorin, the state capital, on Thursday, described workers as the unseen hand behind the successes achieved under his administration’s Shared Prosperity Programme, adding that the well-being of workers would be sustained.
He said: “We will not rest until every Kwaran can boast of a decent standard of living. We will not rest until our industries come back to life and create jobs. We will not rest until all youths are productively engaged. We will not rest until all our children get quality functional education. Until quality healthcare is available everywhere in Kwara State and opportunities for prosperity are available to all, we will not rest.”
Ahmed recalled that despite the shortfall in allocation from the Federation Account, the state government approved N936 million as annual increase for civil servants in the state; N3 billion was accessed as car loans by civil servants; while N640 million was made available as micro-credit funds to small and medium scale enterprises, including artisan and transporters.
According to him, various employment and empowerment schemes for the youth, community health insurance scheme and payment of student bursaries have been implemented by his administration.
The Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress in Kwara State, Comrade Farouk Akanbi, commended the state government for its labour friendly policies, including regular and prompt payment of salaries and stoppage of deduction of Millennium Development Goals levy from workers’ salaries.
Akanbi expressed concern that the level of insecurity and insurgency in the country has become worrisome, adding that it calls for urgent attention.
His counterpart in the Trade Union Congress, Comrade Kolawole Olumoh, in his speech, called for the diversification of the economy of the state from the present civil service structure through “heavy investment in industrial development, agriculture, healthcare system and job creation already initiated by this administration to sustain already provided amenities”.
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