Governor of Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano, has presented four Toyota Coaster buses for the daily transportation of workers across the state. This is in keeping with his promise to stimulate productivity in the workforce by creating the enabling environment and raising the morale of workers.

Presenting the buses to the Head of Service, Mr. Chidi Ezeoke, Tuesday in Awka, the governor charged the workers to rededicate themselves to service and absolute commitment to the development agenda of the government.

He also explained that the gesture was in fulfillment of the promise made to the state workforce during his maiden meeting with them last month. According to him, “Civil servants play fundamental roles in the success of every administration and they should be encouraged with necessary logistics that will make their work easier. I believe that these buses will help to alleviate your transport difficulties, and ensure that you report to work early.”

Governor Obiano further re-iterated that his administration was ready to fulfil all the promises he had made but that, in return, the workers must turn over the new leaf, emphasising the need for punctuality and greater commitment from the entire workforce.

The buses will be plying four designated routes every work day. The routes include Onitsha to Awka, Nnewi to Awka, Ekwulobia to Awka and Otuocha to Awka.

The governor further assured that government would fast track the completion of the 1,000 housing units at the Civil Servant Estate in Isiagu to tackle the accommodation challenges of workers while measures were now in place to improve the state internally generated revenue to enable his administration work into the issue of minimum wage in line with his earlier promise to rebuild both physical and human infrastructure.

Receiving the buses, State Head of Service, Chidi Ezeoke, thanked Governor Obiano for prompt fulfillment of the promise to the workers and urged workers to reciprocate the gesture through hard work and dedication to duty so as to attract more interventions from the government.

Also reacting to the development, Anambra State Chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Patrick Obianyo, and his Trade Union Congress counterpart, Comrade Ifeanyi Okechukwu, assured that the gesture would indeed encourage punctuality and greater productivity, noting that late comers no longer have excuses to make about lack of transportation.

In another development, Governor Obiano has made clear the intention of his administration to prevent future occurrence of fire disasters in markets across the state particularly the Ose-Okwodu market Onitsha where the Ogboji section was gutted by fire recently. He made the commitment while receiving the report of a seven-man committee set up a fortnight ago to carry out investigation into the remote and immediate causes of the fire incident in the market and come up with some far-reaching recommendations that would help to avert future occurrences.

Receiving the report from the chairman of the Committee, Igwe Rowland Odegbo, Abogu II of Nteje, at the Executive Chambers of the Government House, Awka, the governor expressed the expectation that the recommendations would among other things ensure that the frequency of fire incident in markets would be a thing of the past and that measures taken would improve the conditions of markets and the trading environment.

He noted: “For instance, Onitsha Main Market at present has outgrown its original design and needs immediate attention to check over-crowding, encroachment into the open spaces and construction of illegal make shift stalls. The spaces are cluttered such that movement is hampered during emergency situations like fire outbreak, even fire trucks can’t get to the scenes on time. Such a situation is not ideal for modern markets.”

Governor Obiano reiterated the determination of his administration to give a facelift to markets in the state to make them more conducive and easily accessible to human and vehicular traffics, adding that the government would ensure that they are provided with necessary infrastructural amenities and adequate security.

The Odegbo-led Committee has other members like Chief Chuma Eruchalu, Barrister C.I. Okoye, Mmr. Emma Ndubuisi, Superintendent of Police, Fasugba Temitope, Mrs Promise Ezeigwe and Mrs Grace Okonkwo.

•Photo shows Governor Willie Obiano (M), Head of Service, Mr. Chidi Ezeoke (L), and Dr. Nkem Okeke, Deputy Governor (R), during the presentation of Mass Transit Buses to Civil Servants in Awka.

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