May Day: Workers’ welfare in front burner of my administration ― Okowa

Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State has felicitated workers in the state, saying that their welfare at all times had remained in the front burner of his administration’s priorities.

In a message to mark workers’ day celebration taking place across the globe on Friday, Okowa said the society would remain eternally grateful and indebted to health, transport and media workers as well as utility employees and all those involved in the fight against the pandemic for their outstanding sacrifices to protect lives against the pandemic.

The message contained in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Olisa Ifeajika, noted that the 2020 Labour Day with the theme “Stop the Pandemic at Work”, was being celebrated in a peculiar atmosphere of sobriety endangered by the prevailing COVID-19, which had jolted the world.

ALSO READ: Bank alerts customers as fraud rises during COVID-19 crisis

The governor disclosed that to encourage workers involved in government’s measures at combating COVID-19, especially frontline health personnel, enhanced daily hazard allowances had been approved for their support and contributions to the growth and development of the state.

He said that like the global community, Delta Government had at the onset of the pandemic deployed personnel and resources into the battle to save lives of residents in the state by providing necessary facilities and training and re-training relevant health workers.

“We commend our health workers and other frontline personnel in this fight, and in order to encourage them, we have increased their daily hazard allowances and have also approved that they earn half of that allowances when they are off-duty.”

He urged workers to imbibe and internalise the new culture of personal hygiene, including the use of face mask and observance of social-distancing while interacting in public and appealed to them to support the government in sensitising residents, especially at the grassroots, to all matters surrounding the pandemic.

He lauded all workers in the state for their commitment and cooperation with the state government in the execution of its agenda, particularly the flagship – the Stronger Delta target.

“To ensure that workers have a conducive and suitable workplace, we embarked on the construction of a new Secretariat Building in Asaba, which will be completed in a few months.”

The building, which is located on Mariam Babangida Way, is expected to house all Ministries, Departments and Agencies in an integrated network and make service delivery by workers seamless.

TRIBUNE ONLINE