By Odimmegwa Johnpeter, Abuja
The President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, has commended the Federal Civil Service strategic plan drive that is aligned with the priorities of the Renewed Hope Agenda. He also reassured him of his administration’s commitment to working for the Nigerian people by beckoning on all civil and Public Servants to take their tasks very seriously for a successful implementation of the national goals. He gave the reassurance during an Award and Gala Night ceremony marking the 2024 Civil Service Week in Abuja. This was contained in a statement signed by Mohammed A. Ahmed, Director, Communications.
Represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, CON, the President commended the dedication of Dr. Folasade Yemi-Esan, CFR in prioritising some reforms, such as Capacity Building and Talent Management with a well-structured mandatory training programme (SMAT-P), as well as innovation. He, however, assured of his Administration’s unwavering commitment to cultivating, empowering and professionalising human capital within the Civil Service without undermining welfare and development, so that Civil Servants can optimally perform for the growth of our nation.
“I have provided all the necessary support to the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation to ensure the continued stability of the Service and to implement far-reaching policies and reforms capable of improving efficiency and service delivery… I urge for the swift implementation of these reforms within your respective Ministries. Our commitment to delivering on the Renewed Hope Agenda demands urgency without compromising due process,” he stated.
On the revelations shared by the Head of the Civil Service regarding employees who had relocated abroad while drawing salaries without formally resigning, Mr. President calls for the culprits to be brought to book, including those that aided and abetted, insisting that the monies these persons collected must be refunded
While extolling the Awardees, whose exemplary service of integrity, efficiency, and dedication point to a collective commitment to a better Nigeria, the SGF enjoined them to be continually dedicated to their duties, as they strive for excellence in the service to the nation. He added that “with recognition comes more responsibility.”
In her Welcome Address, the Head of the Service of the Federation, underscored the importance of instituting an incentive system that rewards high performance and innovation, while addressing underperformance, insisting that “the Service must not be seen as a dumping ground for job seekers but must attract the best and the brightest, who will contribute fresh ideas and demonstrate the determination and capability to drive national plans toward solving our socio-economic problems.” She reiterated that the Office took decisive steps to develop a sustainable framework for the implementation of an annual Reward and Recognition System (R&RS), which is integrated into the sixth pillar of FCSSIP25, which is Enhancing Value Proposition for Civil Servants (Staff Welfare).
While appreciating His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR for the zeal in improving the welfare of the workforce through the N35,000 provisional wage award for all treasury-paid Federal Government workers for six months and ongoing efforts to review the national minimum wage, Dr Yemi-Esan revealed that the Office of the Head of Service has not been working alone in the area of enhancing the value proposition for Civil Servants. She further disclosed that the Office leverages in collaboration with stakeholders and private partners in driving its reform processes. According to her, with the partnerships in place, the level of intervention on R&RS has been scaled up, which includes; An Endowment Fund of N500,000 for each of the best performing Civil Servants from the MDAs facilitated by the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation; The Federal Public Service Entrepreneurship Programme in collaboration with the Bank of Agriculture; Annual Provision of Group Life Assurance (GLA) Cover for Federal Government Employees; and Provision of Affordable Housing at single-digit Interest rate, through the Federal Integrated Staff Housing (FISH) Programme, in collaboration with the Federal Government Staff Housing Loans Board (FGSHLB), which has recently recorded a landmark achievement of the development of 116-unit FISH Housing Estate at Gwagwalada.
She also revealed that the Office has started receiving donations of 6 Toyota Camry Cars in support of the 2024 Civil Service Week from the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), which will be presented as prizes to the runners-up for best performing Officers.
In their Goodwill Messages, the Chairman of the Aig Imoukheude Foundation, Mr. Aigboje Aig-Imoukheude commended the efforts of the Head of Service in bringing the Nigeria Civil Service to an enviable standard that every Nigerian is proud of. He restated his commitment to improving the service delivery. The Insurance Companies and Brokers also assured of their continued collaboration, support, and advocacy on the need to prioritise the welfare of Civil Servants.
The 2024 edition of the Service-wide Rewards and Recognition Award witnessed presentations of six categories of Awards namely; the Presidential Distinguished Public Service Career Award; Presidential Civil Service Merit Award; Head of the Civil Service of the Federation Award; The Public Service Excellence Award; 2024 Sports Achievement Award; and Work-Life Balance Award for three Ministries who have demonstrated exceptional commitment towards it. While the staff of the three Ministries (Ministries of Agriculture and Food Security, Environment and Sports Development) received the Award, Letters of Commendation were presented to their respective Permanent Secretaries.
The high point of the event was the Star Prize Award of a brand new 2023 JAC JS4 Luxury Model SUV, which went to a Director in the Ministry of Transportation, Dr. Mercy Olanike Ilori JP, who championed the implementation of the Performance Management System (PMS) in the Ministry, as well as facilitated the development of the Ministry’s FCSSIP Score Card; the second prize of a 2-bedroom Semi-Detached Bungalow went to Razaq Kolawale Adekola, a Deputy Director (Forestry), whose contributions as a geo-spatial officer led to the historic Nigeria’s Vegetation and Land Use Assessment that provided the baseline and the then real-time status of forest cover and other land uses in the country , while Mr. Obasi Sunday Ikemefuna, a Chief Agricultural Superintend Officer in the Federal Ministry Of Agriculture And Food Security clinched the third prize with a serviced Plot of Land measuring 400sqm for building a training centre for Industrial Attachment (IT) Students and developing billboards and training modules to improve their knowledge rather than carrying files and doing errands for officers.
Present at the event were members of the National Assembly, the Ministers of Youth Development, Environment and Finance and the Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Transformative Permanent Secretaries, CEOs, the organised private sector, former Permanent Secretaries, the Military and Paramilitary, Directors, nominees from various MDAs and members of the Fourth Estate of the Realm.
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