Osun Staff Audit: Retirees With Health Issues To Participate Via Telephone After Pensioners Fainted During Exercise

By Segun Ojo, Osogbo

Osun State Government has said all bedridden pensioners and others with serious health challenge will henceforth have their audit exercise conducted through telephone.

This detective became necessary as three of the aged retirees collapsed on Monday within the premises of the Center for Black Culture and International Understanding, Osogbo, venue of the ongoing screening.

It took the intervention of the medics of the State Ambulance Service to revive and stablise the victims.

A statement signed by the State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi on yesterday revealed that such pensioners, will no longer be required to be physically present at the venue of the screening exercise.

The statement added that pensioners who are currently outside the State would have their screening conducted via the same means.

It also said “Pensioners outside the state at the moment no longer need to travel down to Osun State as they will also be having their screening through the telephone.

“Additionally, pensioners in the diaspora will also be screened only through video calls.

“In line with the above, the Pension Board is expected to make available all the particulars, especially pictures of pensioners to the Consultant, for ease of identification during the video call screenings.

“The above directives take immediate effect.”

Recall that three members of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP) Osun State chapter were on Monday collapsed , during the ongoing staff audit exercise of the state workforce.

The incident, it was gathered threw members of the union into confusion as the healthy among them were running helter skelter to revive the collapsed victims.

Retirees, numbering about 2,000 old men and women who are visibly aged, frail and in some cases sick, were at the premises of the Center for Black Culture and International Understanding, Osogbo, venue of the ongoing screening exercise.

A number of them who could not withstand long time standing were seen either, lying down, sleeping or sitting on the bare floor to avoid eventuality.

CityMirrorNews correspondent who was at the venue of the screening exercise reports that many of the pensioners were visibly angry for what they described as inhuman treatment by the handlers of the exercise.

Samuel Aduroroja decried the arrangement and the eventual treatments of his colleagues who came for the exercise from across the State.