The Permanent Secretary of the State House, Mr Temitope Fashedemi has commended retiring Presidency staff, affirming that their years of dedicated and quiet service remain deeply valued and will henceforth be formally celebrated annually.
Speaking at a reception for the retirees at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Fashedemi said; “the State House would institutionalise annual reward systems to ensure careers no longer end in silence.”
According to a statement signed by the State House Director of Information and Publicity, Abiodun Oladunjoye, Fashedemi urged the retirees to remain part of the State House, saying “their institutional memory and mentorship would continue to matter in the years ahead.”
He encouraged the retirees to share advice when needed and keep in touch with former colleagues.
“Your service is valuable. Don’t be a stranger to us, reach out to your colleagues here whenever necessary,” he said.
Fashedemi argued that welfare, recognition and rewards are now priorities in public service management and will further guide the Presidency in its reward for workers.
He decried the old culture where officials disappear from duty rolls without ceremony, noting that the State House would keep faith with reforms that dignify service.
“We must mark exits with gratitude, not indifference.
“Somebody cannot spend 35 years of their life and just stop showing up, as if nothing happened.
“We thought it was a flaw, and celebrating people when they excel is now codified in the public service.
If we don’t celebrate ourselves, nobody will celebrate us,” Fashedemi told the gathering.
The Permanent Secretary explained that the first edition was timed to pull in as many retirees as possible, including those who left months earlier, and promised that subsequent editions would hold routinely.
Fashedemi also said each honouree would receive a tangible gift in appreciation of service.
He said the event aligns with ongoing Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 25 that elevate staff welfare, safe workspaces, proper tools, and structured recognition, so “commitment is noticed.”
Speaking on behalf of the retirees, Dr Acho Terungwa, urged the Permanent Secretary, Fashedemi to conduct a hands-on review of the hospital.
“If you do that, you can take the state house to the next level at the end of the day,” Terungwa said.
Meanwhile, a representative of the Chairman, Medical Advisory Council, State House Medical Centre, Dr. Ngozi Mmamelu, said the facility had “moved on” its troubled past and is now working as a unified team to restore its reputation.
Crediting the support of the Permanent Secretary and other senior officials, Mmamelu noted that medical staff across cadres are aligned on service standards, patient experience and reliability of critical units.
Retirees at the reception spanned various cadres including directors such as Osunkoya Omokehfe, medical doctors such as Dr. Taiwo Fasoranti and Acho Terungwa.
Others include; Hassan Abdullahi; senior managers including Fasoranti. Olumide, Obe Bridget, Suleiman Rabi’u, Edwins Onwanyi and chief verifier Bala Matti; principal and accounts officers Kough Emmanuel and Duniya Dogo; technical and works leads Shobande Waidi, Lawal Taofeek and Jimoh Ayinde; health and catering staff, Bosan Hanatu, Amuda Audu and Effiom Emmanuel; as well as clinic personnel; CMDs Abalaka Abdullahi, Sani Ali, Dauda Yahaya, Iliyas Ibrahim among many others who received parting gifts.
Lateefah Ibrahim