Minister for State for Labour and Employment, Mr. Festus Keyamo has described Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq as one of the most labour-friendly Governors in Nigeria.
“I want to make bold to say that this present Kwara Government is more labour friendly in terms of labour relation. Kwara is one of the most labour friendly states in the whole country that is why we are very comfortable and we are at home being here”, Keyamo said during a courtesy visit to the Governor in Ilorin on Friday.
Keyamo, who was in the state on a working visit to the Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies, lamented the government-labour relations in most states of the federation.
“We see how government-labour relations have deteriorated in most parts of this country especially with many state governments and it has led to problems in those states. Thank God we have not witnessed that in Kwara State. So, we appeal to you to take full advantage of the institute and engage them in programmes,” he said.
“Similarly, we know it is a federal institution, but we want you to be magnanimous enough to give us a capital project and it can be named after you. We have so many needs there and we want you to assist us with any of them and we will be very happy to see it to fruition.
“We are here to also say a big thank you Your Excellency for the very conducive environment you have provided for this institute to strive and for making your door open for us.
“For the smooth functioning and growth of the institute, we appeal that you take full advantage of the proximity of the institute by encouraging labour unions and organisations here to go there for seminars and workshop.
“You can also send some of your aides in charge of labour relations to go there for refresher courses because the more we develop our knowledge about labour relations, the more we can address labour related matters before they escalate.”
Governor AbdulRazaq, for his part, commended the Labour unions for their support and understanding.
He called for changing of the Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies to Michael Imoudu University for Labour Studies.
“During your tenure, we seek the change of that institute to Michael Imoudu University for Labour Studies. The reason for that is that the infrastructure is there. Most of the new universities we have today don’t have infrastructure in that institute. It will be one of your achievements in office. Most of our universities take years to put infrastructure in place but the Institute has crossed that hurdles already. That is one legacy that we will say you have achieved as a minister,” AbdulRazaq said.
The Governor, who again commended the appointment of Comrade Issa Aremu as the Director General of the institute, assured the management of the institute of his administration’s support.
“Indeed, we are very happy to receive you here today. We thank the federal government for situating the institute here. We agree that the institute is being under utilized by the whole nation, not just Kwara State,” he stated.
“You will see changes and more cooperation between the state and that institution very soon. We will certainly take advantage of that and you will get feedback very soon from the Director General who was a major part of our struggle and a great advocate of community development.”
Keyamo was accompanied on the visit by Comrade Issa Aremu; veteran labour leaders Alhaji Hassan Sumonu and Frank Ovie Kokori.