Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti
The Deputy Governor of Ekiti State, Mrs. Christianah Monisade Afuye, has stressed that hard work, loyalty and honesty are pivotal traits needed from the civil servants to actualise the success of Governor Biodun Oyebanji’s administration.
Afuye stated that the current administration in the state would continually synergise with the civil servants for the implementation of its six-point policy thrust that are geared to overhaul the thematic areas of the economy in a manner that it would positively touch the lives of Ekiti populace.
She made these remarks yesterday in Ado Ekiti during a training programme that was organised for the staff of the Deputy Governor’s office, which was titled: “Essential Leadership Strategies and Skills for Competent Ekiti State Civil Servants,” that was delivered by an Associate Professor, Dr. Oke Aruleba.
The deputy governor noted that regular trainings for the civil servants is a sine-qua-non to development and urged the bureaucrats to embrace every platform being provided by the state government to broaden their horizons for effective service delivery.
She applauded the staff and resource person for conceptualising the in-house training, which she described as one of the ways to rejuvenate and fortify the service.
Afuye urged the civil servants to perceive themselves as partners and allies in the giant leaps being made by the Oyebanji’s administration to radicalise Ekiti in terms of developments, and in all facets of the economy.
She said: “I hope our staff will embrace this kind of training that is being offered by our resource person pro bono. They shouldn’t only participate; they should assimilate the knowledge being impacted. I know that with this training, some of us will make amends and be more dedicated to service delivery.
“The Biodun Oyebanji’s administration is incurably committed to reward outstanding, hardworking, honest and dedicated civil servants in order to motivate them to be more zealous and committed to better productivity in the discharge of their duties.”
Aruleba, while delivering the lecture, urged the civil servants to cultivate the habit of hard work and self-development, saying; “You can’t keep Ekiti working, when you can’t keep yourself working.”
The associate professor added that they should act as true agents of change in the system, by eschewing corruption, pull-him-down syndrome, conspiracy and other nefarious activities that could derail government’s progress.
The university don said: “Change your attitude to work, be productive and be change agents. If you check the present Governor Biodun Oyebanji, he is working the talk. You have to make yourself work, so that you can make Ekiti work, especially by contributing to the realisation of the 2050 development plan of Ekiti State.
“Your thoughts and outputs must be positive. Your thoughts and outputs shouldn’t be negative. You have to be in the know and in the flow to keep Ekiti working, and you need to be extraordinary to achieve this height.”
The renowned academic added further; “Embrace self-development and place high value on yourselves to attract recognition and promotion. Keeping Ekiti working is a task that must be achieved.
“Be determined, purposeful, resolute and focused. Let us think of the future. Dallas is the 23rd largest economy in the world. However, the State is landlocked just like Ekiti, but the geographical entity is not sky locked. Some people built it into one of the largest economies in the global space.
“Value the concepts of integrity, honesty, hardwork, respect, team spirit and be a game changer.
“Let us have a good attitude about Nigeria and Ekiti. A word of benediction can change everything. Don’t rain curses on your country, state and leaders, but pray for them.”
The Permanent Secretary, office of the Deputy Governor, Mr. Abayomi Opeyemi, said that the programme was specifically designed for civil servants to be imbued with knowledge that would spur their productivity.
“This is for our staff to acquire up-to-date knowledge and skills. We will liaise with other agencies and cascade to other sections of the civil service. Let us speak good about Ekiti State; let us be loyal to the state government and being loyal is not by eye-service, but by our commitments to duties.”
