Kogi State Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo has received knocks for remaining insensitive to the welfare of civil servants since his assumption of office.

According to the Executive Director, Conscience for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution (CHRCR), Comrade Idris Abdul Miliki, the governor has not constructed a room in the last one year to improve the welfare of workers despite the creation of the Ministry of Housing in the state.

Miliki stated this recently while interacting with journalists in Lokoja, the state capital.

Miliki, who described the Ododo administration as not being sensitive to the welfare of workers, lamented that Kogi State hosted two giant cement companies, but regrettably, the present administration refused to take advantage of the companies to build houses for its citizens.

He said, “Kogi State government has not built and commission a room and parlour despite the presence of Dangote cement and Mangal cement, both located in Kogi West.

“Why is it difficult for the government to go into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the cement companies to build infrastructure that will improve the welfare of workers and other citizens in the state?

“When Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo created the ministry of housing, people were happy, thinking that more estate houses would be built for workers. But after more than a year in office, not a single house has been built. This ineptitude toward leadership is worrisome and condemnable in a state that plays host to two cement companies.

“If previous administrations could build government house, build Otokiti Housing Estate, build 200 housing units, build Aniebo quarters, build legislative quarters, build workers village, among others, I see no reason why the present administration is foot-dragging to do the same in the interest of the citizens.

“But I don’t really know why the current administration has considered building houses for workers as taboo.

Payment of salary is not enough to improve the welfare of workers. When civil servants own houses on owner occupier basis, it gives workers peace of mind and also improves their well-being.”

Miliki, therefore, called on the governor to “make hay while the sun shines” by utilising the presence of two cement companies in the state to change the narratives in the housing sector.

Also speaking on the issue of housing deficit in Kogi State, the chairperson of Kogi Accountability Platform (KAP), Hamza Aliyu, lamented that if the government refuses to build houses for workers, the effort in paying salaries regularly would be in vain, as much of the salary would be used to pay high rents in Lokoja, the state capital.

He, therefore, called on Ododo to be proactive in attending to workers’ welfare, which includes transportation, food, water, healthcare and housing.

An estate surveyor, who also lent his voice, wondered why Ododo cannot embark on massive construction of estates to make houses affordable for workers in Kogi.

“It is worrisome if, after seventeen months as Governor of Kogi state, the current administration cannot lay a foundation block anywhere in the state for the construction of an estate.”