Padding Fed Govt staff home need

Think of a situation where irrespective of the years of service in government, a worker retires into penury occasioned by lack of a befitting roof over his or her head. Nothing exposes the frustration of a man than his inability to get a befitting roof over the head of his family at retirement. Service is […]

Think of a situation where irrespective of the years of service in government, a worker retires into penury occasioned by lack of a befitting roof over his or her head. Nothing exposes the frustration of a man than his inability to get a befitting roof over the head of his family at retirement. Service is usually given a rich meaning with something very rewarding and nothing is as rewarding as when a public servant retires into his own home after years in service.  
Apparently, the colonial masters were quite mindful of all this. this is why they founded  the ‘African Staff Housing Scheme — a scheme that was meant to motivate public servants to see their services as worthwhile venture as far back as 1924.
This scheme was to later evolve into a different and more encompassing phase with a view to providing mortgage facilities for government workers to get houses for themselves.  To give it a policy face in Nigeria, it was later rechristened The Federal Government Staff Housing Loans Board which later became self-accounting. Suffice to say from inception, this body was under the supervision of the Ministry of Works and Housing. Later, it was moved to the service welfare office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation.  As a substantive parastatal, it was set up to drive the housing policy of federal government staff, the initiative endorsed by government as a corporate social responsibility.
Essentially, it is to provide soft financial backing to career public servants including civil servants, members of the armed forces: the police, Customs, Immigration, Prisons, Civil Defense and the legislative and judiciary staff to enable them to purchase, build or renovate their own houses, for a peaceful life after a successful career in the public service’.
According to the mandate of the board, the loan scheme is revolving funds through which grants of soft loans are advanced to public servants within the limit of available resources and in accordance with the regulations for the purpose.
The beneficiary is to build residential house in Nigeria for their use and family. One can buy a parcel of land on which such residential house can be built or improve or extend a residential house anywhere in Nigeria, being a house owned by the applicant and to which he has a valid title acceptable to the board.
It won’t be out of place to remind Nigerians that some highly placed citizens are beneficiaries of this scheme. Before attaining their revered positions in government, they availed themselves of the facility. This means such people started small in the journey of life.
President Goodluck Jonathan’s transformation agenda has continued to draw from this scheme to enhance the  value of  public servants in the country. Little wonder he places maximum premium on this scheme. As a matter of policy, the Goodluck administration has given the scheme further impetus.
The Chief Executive of the Board, Dr  Hannatu Adamu Fika recently said, “With the current dispensation in government, public workers are in for a beautiful treat by reason of repackaged federal government housing loans board. Workers in the public sector cannot ask for something more than this cushion of a policy that will insulate workers from the vagary of post retirement housing challenges.”
Goodluck to Nigerian workers!
Adegbola is Head, Press & Public Relations, Federal Government Staff Housing Loans Board.