Nigeria Content Online

Kayode Fayemi,
Ekiti State governor, on Monday appealed to the federal government for
the speedy execution and completion of the proposed housing scheme for
all teachers in the state. The governor was speaking during the signing
and presentation of certificates of occupancy to the delegation of the
Federal Ministry of Education who visited his office in Ado Ekiti for
the takeoff of the Housing for All Teachers (HAT) Scheme. Mr. Fayemi,
who commended the federal government for the initiative, advised that
the prompt completion of the project would motivate teachers to take
jobs in towns like Aramoko, Ikere and Otun Ekiti in
Ekiti Central, South and North Senatorial Districts of the state.

Reward on earth

Mr. Fayemi said
that teachers constituted a significant percentage of the workforce in
the state and that they remained one of the potent forces that had
propelled the civil service, as well as the economy of the state.

“It must be
demonstrated by government at all levels that it is not a curse to be a
teacher but a pride. Their well being must be a topmost priority, so
that they can realize that they can also get their benefits here on
earth,” Mr. Fayemi said. The governor appealed to the Federal Ministry
of Education to make all logistics that would facilitate the smooth
takeoff of the project in the state.

“I am not from any
of the three towns suggested to the federal government for the takeoff
of the project. I don’t believe in that and I will never encourage it,
because that is not how government operates,” he said.

The officer in charge of HAT in the state, Sally Aguta, said
education remained the most effective weapon to drive away illiteracy
and poverty in any developing nation and that it should not be treated
with levity.