THE Osun Job Centre, an agency of the Osun State Government, has been shut down by the administration of Governor Ademola Adeleke.
Investigations revealed that the job centre located opposite Ayegbaju International Market, Osogbo, had been inactive for 10 months before it was put under lock and key in October, 2023.
This is just as the salary of the workers of the agency have been withheld.
Findings revealed that the workers did not receive any salary throughout 2023.
OSUN DEFENDER gathered that there was no official communication from the state government to the workers before the agency was shut.
It was observed that the sign post of the agency has also been removed from the office building.
Osun Job Centre was under the Ministry of Human Resources and Capacity Building which had N401,663,270.00 expenditure, including N88,678,270.00 personnel expenditure and overhead of N211,542,310.00 in the 2023 budget.
A sum of N25,140,000.00 was specifically allocated to the agency under “Redefinition Of Osun Job Centre (MHRCB) – Land & Buildings” heading in the 2023 budget.
But Adeleke has scrapped the ministry and replaced it with Bureau of Human Resources and Capacity Building under the office of the governor.
Findings revealed that the bureau has a recurrent expenditure of N12,500,000.00, personnel expenditure of N58,692,725.00 and capital expenditure of N189,000,000.00 in the 2024 budget.
OSUN DEFENDER got across to three workers of the agency but two of them declined to comment on the matter.
However, the third person confirmed that the Adeleke administration has withheld their salary for 12 months running.
According to the worker who craved anonymity, the state government was yet to communicate to them on whether they have been disengaged or not.
He said: “We are in the dark; we don’t know what is happening. We just discovered the office was put under lock and key in October 2023 and the security personnel vacated the place. We have been in the dark since then, and our salary running to over a year now has not been paid.
“We are not politicians; we do not belong to any political party. Our recruitment and appointment were based on merit. We didn’t lobby. The state government should come out on the state of the job centre.”
OSUN DEFENDER gathered that the former governor Gboyega Oyetola’s administration had also withheld the running cost of the agency for three years, making the workers to foot the electricity, stationery, toiletries and cleaning bills by themselves.
The job centre was created in 2016 as part of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola administration’s effort to reduce unemployment in the state.
It was established to facilitate recruitment of Osun indigenes and residents into private sectors and help the private employers to recruit suitable candidates from among unemployed youth in the state.
The agency was also conducting ICT, employability and entrepreneurial training for indigenes and residents of the state to make them suitable for available opportunities.
Osun Job centre also engaged in career counseling, review of Curriculum Vitae (CV), interview preparation and career coaching to indigenes and residents of the state.
Available records showed that the agency had secured employment for over 4,000 indigenes and residents of Osun in private companies and trained over 10,000 youths in ICT in all the local government of the state between 2016 and 2022.
However, the state government has refused to make any statement on the Osun Job Centre.
The Head of Service of the state, Mr. Ayanleye Aina, did not response to enquiries made by this medium.
He neither respond to the messages sent to him nor answer his phone calls.
Aina was the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Human Resources before his elevation to the position of HOS.
Also, the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Mr. Kolapo Alimi did not respond to enquiries, likewise the Spokesperson to the Governor, Mallam Olawale Rasheed.
Ismaeel Uthman is an Editor, Media Consultant with over 14 years experience in print journalism.
A consummate writer and reporter, Uthman has received accolades for his works, especially one that appeals for good governance and community development. He is a recipient of many laurels, including the Best Investigative Reporter (Print) Award of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Osun State Council, in 2020.
