BY TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO
A factional candidate of the People’s Democratic Party for the July 16 governorship election in Osun State, Dotun Babayemi, has charged workers and pensioners in the state to save themselves of further alleged sacrilegious treatments being meted out on them by the administration of Governor Gboyega Oyetola by voting the PDP in the forthcoming poll.
This was contained in a message Babayemi sent to workers and pensioners to mark this year’s May Day celebration in the state on Sunday.
While felicitating with the workforce of the state, the factional gubernatorial candidate urged both serving and retired workers in the state to have a retrospect on how Oyetola’s administration and his predecessor’s, Rauf Aregbesola, treated them shably with lack of incentives, non-cash back of promotions, non-payment of pension entitlements among other poor treatments.
He challenged the workers and retirees to flush out the present administration of the All Progressives Congress with their votes in July and massively cast their ballots for the PDP in order for the old glory of the civil service and retirement to be restored.
Babayemi further accused Oyetola and Aregbesola of depriving retired civil servants the opportunity of enjoying the harmonisation of pensions approved and granted by the Federal Government in 2014 and 2019 effective in July, 2014 and April, 2018 respectively adding that it was disheartening for Oyetola not to have paid the 30 months half salaries arrears of workers.
Assuring workers and senior citizens that PDP would correct the anomalies and bring back the old glory to the civil and public service, Babayemi added that “the state and its people shall witness all-round developments.”
He wrote, “As you are aware, it (Workers Day) is a day of sober reflection during which workers and pensioners take stock on how they fared in the past and reflect on the future. Therefore, as you mark the occasion, I wish to convey my heartfelt congratulations and esteemed regards to you all and also pray that the grace of God will give you strength to break grounds with ease in the ensuing year.
“Also, it’s rather disheartening to note that the civil service which is the engine room and pride of any government in the past, has been bastardised in Osun State through bad governance, lack of incentives to civil servants, shabby treatment to workers, job insecurity and poor treatments of old and fragile pensioners, who are denied their rights, claims and entitlements, to mention but a few.
“To buttress this point for instance, please permit me to recall that pensioners under the Defined Benefits Scheme, i.e, non- Contributory Pensioners have hitherto, not been granted the privilege to enjoy harmonisation of pensions approved and granted by the Federal Government in 2014 and 2019 effective in July, 2014 and April, 2018 respectively.
“The last harmonisation of pensions enjoyed was in 2007 as approved by the Olagunsoye Oyinlola PDP-led administration. This means that pensioners in the state have been earning the same poor pension every month these past years under the All Progressives Congress (APC) government of both former and present governors, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola and Gboyega Oyetola respectively.
“The questions that now beg for answers are: For how long shall both workers and pensioners continue to swallow the bitter pills being forced into the their throats by APC?; Do workers and pensioners realise that they have the needed political clout to effect the removal of any political impediment hampering their progress?
“The answers to these questions are not far-fetched. The solution is at your doorstep. It is your voting strength that you need to rightly deploy, employ your capability to mobilise others to vote and give massive support to the PDP to roundly win the forthcoming governorship election of July 16, 2022. The PDP will correct the anomalies and bring back the old glory to the civil and public service.The state and its people shall witness all-round developments,” Babayemi further assured.
