By GBENGA OLA
OSOGBO—Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State, weekend, said his government was not elected to serve the interest of workers alone but, the entire citizens of the state.

The governor however said that workers were part of the machinery of governments anywhere in the world to serve the people.

Speaking on the ongoing strike by public workers in the state over the implementation of the N18.000 minimum wage, which entered its second week, Aregbesola noted that it was erroneous to think that the government existed only for the welfare of workers.

According to him, “For long we have been under this erroneous impression that the welfare of the workers alone is the purpose of governance. No! Workers are part of the machinery of government for the delivery of excellent service to the people.

“If you then commit the entire resources belonging to the state to the payment of workers who are only on the payroll of the government, what happens to millions of other people who are also stakeholders in the same state who are not on the payroll of the government? Don’t they have right to access to good roads?

“Don’t they have right to access qualitative education? Are you not going to provide water for the generality of the people? You must be able to provide good infrastructure but all these will remain dreams if all you do is to pay salaries and nothing else remains. When a government commits over 90 per cent of its total earnings on salaries of workers alone, how do you embark on development projects?”