Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, has tasked the Chairman of the state Civil Service Commission and the Head of Service, Mrs Ngozi Obioma to urgently review and address the long overdue staff promotions, conversions, and confirmations within the State Civil Service.
Governor Otti gave the directive during the June Edition of the Monthly Media Parley tagged “Governor Otti Speaks To Abians.
The Governor noted that although the last promotions were conducted in 2021, which he said presents a huge challenge, assured that government would not ignore the welfare of workers.
“Now that we were talking about promotion, conversion and all that, interestingly, at the last Exco, i had instructed the chairman of the Civil Service Commission and the Head of Service to sit down and look at promotions and the like.
“From reports that I got, I think the last time promotions were done was in 2021, so that throws up quite some challenge but at least let’s look at it and see what we can do. We are not ignoring it.
“You must also admit that a lot of things went wrong , just like in every other sector.
“We are not retrieving from ground zero, we are actually retrieving from negative so it becomes a bit more challenging and more difficult, so you have to bear with us”, he pleaded.
Governor Otti who emphasized that his administration is prioritizing the welfare of workers, pointed out that the state government has been regular in salary payment and pensions on or before the 28th of each month, assuring that those with issues would soon be sorted out.
The Governor also addressed concerns regarding leave allowances of workers and promised to consult with the Accountant General and the Head of Service for clarification.
“We don’t have any problem paying people who are going on leave. If there are arrears that have not been paid we can look at that and be sure they are actually arrears.
“Again, I’m just getting to know that (leave allowances), so we will take it half line and then I will find out from the Accountant general and the head of service so that it will be one of the things they will be looking at.
“We believe that a labourer is worthy of his wage and because government is a continuum, we inherit both assets and liabilities. If you are lucky, you have net assets, if you’re unlucky, you have net liabilities but we will have to deal with it so I have taken note of that”, Otti assured.
Regarding the issue of workers wages, Gov Otti said that the state government is awaiting the outcome of the central negotiations on minimum wage adjustments to ensure all wages are appropriately updated.
“I have announced earlier, we are waiting for the negotiations that are happening at the center so that we can do something about the minimum wage which would affect every other wage”, he stated.
Governor Otti while acknowledging the responsibilities of governance, said government also considers the needs of the entire population as it address the welfare of Abia Workforce.
The Governor disclosed that he would soon announce a Chief Information Officer as the state prepares for a digital transformation spearheaded by the introduction of broadband technology.
He noted that the move would ensure data accessibility is available to all citizens regardless of location.
“We are preparing our state for the next century with broadband technology. We are already in the final stages of discussion. Wherever you are, you can have access to data“, Gov Otti stated.
