OFFERS AUTOMATIC EMPLOYMENT FOR 265 GRADUATES
The governor made the demands at second convocation ceremony of the Lagos State College of Health Technology located in Yaba, Lagos. He said the carnage resulting from such industrial action negate Hippocratic oath which medical doctors swear to uphold
Fashola argued that those that invented strikes in the Nigeria health sector did it for the sake of their patients not themselves, pricking the conscience of the present crop of doctors to emulate their past leaders.
“Medical workers from the lowest medical worker to the highest in the chain of command and the team, you are like God on earth. God does not go on strikes. Only sick people and I who have been ill knows your importance .”
Fashola pointed that workers in other sub- sector of the nation’s economy are not satisfied with their remuneration, saying they are not holding governments by the jugular because they do not want the Nigerian state to fail.
Fashola said the state is producing graduates in areas where the Lagos economy has a compelling need, which he identified as the primary healthcare and primary healthcare development.
The governor who said the state healthcare initiative is targeted at prevention offered automatic employment to the 265 graduating students”.
We are producing graduates who will help us achieve our objectives. So therefore in order to show that we are ready to work our talk I have indicated and now say publicly that all of the graduating students today will be immediately employed by our government. We will work the process . We will go to the House of Assembly if it is necessary to raise supplementary budget to funds this . But I make this commitment to you as a matter of honour .”
He emphasised that the state government primary objective is to make sure that hospitals are not filled because they ensure abinitio that the people do not fall sick.
Fashola added the state government will readily grant autonomy to the governing councils and management running institutions in the state ,saying the government will only intervene in their affairs only when it becomes inevitable.
” Believe me, no governor no president wants to be involved in day to day running of institutions. That is why there are Vice Chancellors , provosts, lecturers. and governing councils. Let’s ask ourselves almost too often when there are problems in the schools where do the students and lecturers run to, they run to the government. This is a shared responsibility and I say here that when the request to grant this institution autonomy that it requires get to me I will approve it immediately I receive it.
“Let me make it clear that granting autonomy does not mean it is no longer our school . It does not mean we will not support it. It does not mean we will not invest in it . But the truth is that we do not want to be involved in day to day running of our schools. It requires a lot of woke, time consuming and distracting. I hope this message will be well receive by all our institutions.”
He added that if there is need for a legislation to back the autonomy craved by the institutions he will support the process to yield the responsibility to the management of the school.
