…as Gov assures of payment of gratuity, harmonisation
Teachers who recently retired from the Edo State public school system have applauded Governor Godwin Obaseki on their swift transition from the state’s civil service to its pension payroll.
They gave the commendation during a solidarity visit to Governor Obaseki at Government House, in Benin City, the Edo State Capital.
Chairman, Newly Retired Teachers in Edo, Comrade Iyalomhe Akhagbemhe, said after they retired from the State Civil Service on 6th June 2019, the teachers were impressed with their immediate enrolment into the pension payroll, noting that the feat is the first of its kind in the country.
According to him, “I commend you for matching words with action in repositioning the state’s education sector. We are ready as a group to continually give you our unflinching support to ensure that you succeed in governing Edo State.
“Your re-election bid is guaranteed as you have shown that you are a governor of the people through your commitment to the welfare of workers and your strides in human and infrastructural development in the state.”
In his response, Governor Obaseki expressed delight in hosting the newly retired teachers, adding that the state government followed the law in retiring the teachers on the 6th of June 2019.
“Enrolling you immediately in our pensions payroll and your pension payment is your right,” he said.
Obaseki added that his administration, on assumption of office, met N18 billion pension arrears and has kept faith with the payment of the arrears.
He assured the retired teachers that government has concrete plans to pay their gratuity, noting, “I am not sleeping over the issue of gratuity as we met N18 billion as pension arrears and by the grace of God, we have been paying the arrears. By my calculations before the end of next year, we would have finished the payment and then focus on your gratuity. After that, we will also look at the necessary harmonisation.”
The governor commended the teachers for their support in ensuring the success of the Edo Basic Education Sector Transformation (Edo-BEST) programme, which has become a model for other states and countries across the world to learn from.
“Any government that wants to take care of education must take care of teachers. We thank you for your support and commitment to the Edo-BEST programme as it would have been difficult to implement without your contributions.
“What was destroyed in 40 years cannot be fixed in three years, but for us, we have shown through our commitment and will, that we can fix it. We will push to ensure we achieve this,” the governor added.
