The newly appointed Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Prof. Stephen Ocheni, has assumed office and advocated for industry peace and harmony.
In a statement by the ministry’s Deputy Director (Press), Mr. Samuel Olowookere, Ocheni pledged to achieve a peaceful industrial environment within the country.
According to him, this will ensure improved productivity and boost the Gross Domestic Product of the country in line with the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan of the Federal Government.
Ocheni emphasised that the ministry was critical to peace in the country’s workforce, saying there was a need for all hands to be on deck to achieve the ministry’s mandate.
“If we can put in our best and generate what we need to take care of our total consumption then we do not need to import, we can then start promoting export and thereby improving on our foreign exchange earnings. I call on each and every one of us to do our best and realise this goal, on my part I am ready and happy to identify with this labour-friendly family.”
While welcoming Ochena, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, charged him to utilise his credibility as a renowned professional accountant to improve on the 2018 budget system of the ministry.
Ngige added, “It is our pleasure to welcome the new Minister of State into our fold. The Ministry of Labour and Employment is one of the oldest ministries in Nigeria dated back to 1927 as a colonial department, it is a challenging ministry that has been manned by prominent Nigerians in the past. Your deployment as the Minister of State Labour and Employment gives credence to your credibility as a renowned academia and astute bureaucrat.”