L-R: Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosu; Chairman Citizen Care Foundation (SCCF), Prince Bola Ajibola and Ekiti State Governor/Keynote Speaker Dr Kayode Fayemi, during the SCCF National Workshop in Abeokuta, Ogun State .
Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi has stated that the replication of the Social Security Scheme of his administration by four other States in the country is a proof that the Ekiti-pioneered programme has bettered the lot of aged citizens beyond the boundaries of Ekiti State.
Speaking at the national workshop of the Senior Citizens Care Foundation in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital on Wednesday, the Governor whose administration established Nigeria’s first welfare safety net for the elderly citizens said the adoption of the scheme by other States is not only an affirmation that the Fayemi-led administration has “done something right in our State but also bolsters our pride in knowing that we have contributed in our own little way to the betterment of Nigerian lives even beyond the boundaries of Ekiti State”.
Governor Fayemi said the scheme which pays N5,000 monthly stipend to Ekiti elderly citizens above 65 years is an idea borne out of the belief and devotion to the dictates of the culture of social justice which prescribes that “the strong in the society must cater for the weak and elderly in the great cycle of life”.
He stressed that his encounter with the “appreciative beneficiaries” of the scheme is perhaps the most rewarding experience in his public life.
“I doubt that there is any experience as rewarding in my journey through public life as encountering the appreciative beneficiaries of this programme. There is that sense that is both joyous and humbling that one has been able to make a positive and practical difference in real human lives. There is no greater reward for a policy maker”, Fayemi asserted.
While canvassing support for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the in the forthcoming 2015 general elections, the Governor said if the APC is given the opportunity to govern at the centre, it would implement a nationwide social security programme for the elderly citizens.
Fayemi explained that the party has already included the scheme as one of its cardinal programmes of the prospective federal government; saying that it is would be most rewarding to see a comprehensive scale up on a “national level of an initiative that was birthed in the Land of Honour, Ekiti State”
The Governor added that the Ekiti model of the scheme already has an institutional backing that prevents successive administrations from discontinuing the scheme, noting that there is no stomach infrastructure that is more than the N5000 being paid to the elderly citizens.
In his remarks, the Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun said his administration will continue to priorities the welfare of citizens especially the aged ones.
Amosun who commended the Senior Citizens Care Foundation for initiating the programme assured that his administration will support initiatives that give succour to the elderly citizens.
He assured pensioners in the State of the readiness of his government to clear the backlog of pension owed them.
Also speaking, the Chairman of the Foundation and elder statesman, Prince Bola Ajibola said it is incumbent upon the younger generation and the government to adequately take care of senior citizens.
Ajibola said the embezzlement of pension fund is one of the calamities that have befallen Nigeria, adding tat government at all levels must make pension payments available without pains.
Last modified: July 9, 2014
