2nd July, 2021
The Association of Lagos State Retired Heads of Service and Permanent Secretaries (ALARHOSPS) has announced plan to hold its 8th summit between 17 and 18 August, 2021.
ALARHOSPS’ President, Dr. Femi Olugbile disclosed this at the Second Quarterly General Meeting of the association held on June 29, 2021.
Olugbile said the theme of the summit is “Enhancing the status of Lagos as a resilient and liveable mega city,” with focus on Safety, Hygiene/Sanitation, Political/Economic stability, and access to Goods and Services.
“Many of us will be aware of the recent trending news event that our state, the only one in Nigeria to be rated internationally with major cities of the world on the scale of Liveability, is, sadly, currently rated near the bottom of the scale.
“The usual criteria for assessment are cross-territorial and include things such as Security, Health and Sanitation, Accommodation, Recreational facilities for citizens, Transportation and ease of movement of persons and goods – all which make life easy and comfortable for the common man.
“I believe we can all agree that it is appropriate to focus some of the best minds in the state on seeing how we can optimize our performance in these vital areas, making life easier and more enjoyable for our citizens, and helping to make our Lagos a more livable mega city. That is why the subject has been chosen as the theme for our 8th Summit,” Olugbile stated.
He also disclosed that ALARHOSPS would be hosting a meeting of the Southwest Regional Association of Retired Heads of Service and Permanent Secretaries on the 17th of July, 2021, saying that all members were invited to participate in the deliberations, which would be a hybrid in-person and virtual event.
Olugbile said one of the key discussion items is how the Association might serve as a resource pool for the enhancement of the functions of the Development Agenda for South West Nigeria (DAWN), saying that the Director General of DAWN, Mr Seye Oyeleye would be a Guest Speaker at the event.
On pension and allied issues, the ALARHOSPS president, said discussions were ongoing with the Ministry of Establishment and Pension.
“We are pushing to remove, or at least reduce, the dichotomy between the levels of pensions paid to our members who are on the Pay-As-You-Go scheme and those on the Contributory Pension scheme.
“Other problems such as those of our people who derive some of their pension earnings from the Federal Government, and some members who are disadvantaged on account of the number of years they spent in Service are being defined and put forward for remedial or compassionate action. The feedback we are getting is that there is hope for positive outcomes around the corner,” he said.
According to him, part of the discussion with Ministry of Establishments was focused on ongoing plans for ALARHOSPS to be utilized by the Public Service as a ready and vital pool of knowledge and experience for the continuous enhancement of human resources in the service, through a formal partnership in training and consultancy.
He added that there was already an agreement in principle on this partnership, and that the association was awaiting confirmation on the exact modalities for implementation and terms of engagement.
On health insurance, Olugbile disclosed that all ALARHOSPS members have been enrolled on the State’s Basic Health Insurance Scheme and that the formal commencement of operation is with effect from 1st July, 2021.
Speaking on land allocation issues, he stated that the association was aware that a number of its members have long-standing issues pertaining to government land allocation.
“We are following up on the collation of these individual issues and the communication which was addressed to the Governor’s office and the Lands Bureau by the previous administration. The Head of Service has also been brought into the picture,” he said.