TELL Magazine

… Approves 10 hectares of land for workers’ housing scheme.

This year’s International Workers’ Day in Lagos state workers, on Saturday, May 1, at Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan Stadium, was a harvest of packages for workers and union leaders in the state. The theme of the event was “COVID-19 Pandemic, Social and Economic Crises: Challenges for Jobs, Social Protection and Peoples’ Welfare”.  Speakers at the event and the government did justice to it in words and in actions.

Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos State, after paper presentation by both Gbenga Ekundayo  and Funmilayo Sessi, chairmen of Trade Union Congress, TUC and Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC respectively, addressed the thirst of workers for housing, transportation and appreciation of workers in public service.

appointment into boards so that workers will also have their voice in government, labour city transportation for workers in the state and many more.

The governor announced the approval of 5 hectares of land in Idera, Ibeju Lekki, and another 5 hectares of land at Badagry for workers housing schemes. Beyond their request, Sanwo-Olu also promised to build a state-of-the-art Secretariat for the NLC. According to him, the key to the building will be handed over to the NLC on or before May 2022. 

Sanwo-Olu said “Today, I am handing over 10 hectares of land to organised labour unions in Lagos State”  to build a housing estate for workers. The title documents to lands have been approved and I am happy to hand them over to the leaders of the labour unions at this occasion. This intervention is part of our interventions to reduce burden on our workers whose means of livelihood have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“In the past year, we took a major step in promoting workers’ welfare by revising the 2020 Budget to accommodate the social and economic impact of COVID-19, and to prioritise spending and investment that fulfilled the two primary goals of keeping our people alive and helping them sustain their livelihoods.

“At the beginning of the pandemic, we asked most of our civil servants to stay at home and work from there. I am proud to say that we did not lay off workers, despite the economic recession that accompanied the pandemic and the downward review of the State’s 2020 Budget. We strengthened our social safety net to prevent a widespread loss of jobs, which would have led to a reversal of the progress we have made in the reduction of poverty.”

Dignitaries at the event include Obafemi Hamzat, deputy governor, Oluyinka Ogundimu, chairman, house committee on Establishment, Training and Pensions, Ajibola Ponle, commissioner of Establishment Training and Pensions, Hakeem Muri-Okunola ably represented by the permanent secretary of ministry