Over 300 officers in the Ogun State Civil Service, who have obtained additional qualifications, have taken the upgrade examination to seek promotion to professional and sub-professional officers cadre.
Speaking to journalists during the monitoring exercise of the upgrade examination, which was held at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, the Chairman of the Commission, Tokunbo Odebunmi, said the upgrade would encourage officers to always acquire knowledge that would help them in career progression.
Odebunmi expressed satisfaction at the conduct of the examination and the commitment of officers in the state’s ministries, departments and agencies towards the implementation of the developmental agenda of the government.
He assured workers in the state that the current administration would not relent in providing necessary resources and support to improve their productivity.
He said, “Civil servants are not lazy. You see a lot of them trying to improve themselves by going to school to acquire more knowledge and doing more to enhance their productivity. This is a positive step to achieve more success in the service of the state.
“Despite the fact that government is aware that this exercise will have an increased effect on labour earnings, civil servants cannot be stagnant. As they are providing their service, they also must be recognised and be remunerated,” he said.
On his part, the Permanent Secretary in the commission, Mr Adedayo Somoye, appreciated the state government for creating an enabling working environment for civil servants to flourish and focus on the discharge of their duties.
Speaking on behalf of the candidates, Mrs Titilayo Osoko of the Ministry of Information and Strategy and Mr Moses Bankole from the Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency, lauded the state government and the Civil Service Commission for the conduct of the examination.
They claimed it would bring about exceptional growth and a developmental workforce.