RSG Reaffirms Interest In Retirees’ Welfare

Rivers State Governor, Rt.
Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, says the welfare of the retirees in the State would always be part of his administration’s priority.
Governor Amaechi said this while declaring open a 5-day Entrepreneurship Development Programme for retiring staff of the Ministry of Finance in collaboration with Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON) in Port Harcourt.
Represented by his Deputy, Engr. Tele Ikuru, Governor Amaechi noted that “the need to be re-equipped before retiring from the service is necessary as part of the activities that prepare them for the unknown phase of life after,” stressing that “the end of one phase of life is the beginning of another”.
He explained that “securing a job is not as necessary as retiring well,” pointing out that “the input made in the service would determine the output at the end and same would be applied if one set up a personal business,” adding that the state government indeed appreciate their input as the engine room for the development of the state.
Earlier, the state Commissioner for  Finance, Dr. Chamberlain Peterside, said that the training was aimed at preparing and providing information about retirement to the 51 pre-retirees and post-retirees in the ministry, pointing out that the programme would prepare the staff ahead of their retirement, noting that most of them would find it difficult to create a niche for themselves after retirement.
The state Head of the Civil Service (HOS), Mr. Samuel LongJohn, represented by the Permanent Secretary in the state Establishment Bureau, Mr. Asoelu Ogo, said that training programme for pre/post retirees was one core values of his office, assuring them that the deadline for the 29 days of processing their retirement papers would be actualised.
Also speaking, the Director General of ASCON, Mr. Ajibade Peters, represented by the Director of Studies, Mr. E. E. Akpan, stated that the initiation of this programme by the state government surpasses any material gain, explaining that “most civil servants have never undertaken any business, therefore, their entry into a business venture after retirement may be a disaster if they are not adequately prepared”.