The Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has offered automatic employment to 265 graduates of the College of Health Technology , Lagos, while attending the second convocation of the college.
Speaking at the Harvey Road, Yaba Campus of the school on Thursday, before a gathering of very appreciative students, the Governor said that the State government would ensure the completion of the process by going to the State House of Assembly to fund the employment with a supplementary bill.
He explained that the institution had been producing graduates in an area where the Lagos economy had compelling needs – the Primary Health Care and Primary Health Care Development.
According to the Governor, the automatic employment of the graduates from the College of Health Technology represents the beginning of a journey and urged them to always bear in mind that medical workers are like god on earth to those who are sick or have been sick at one time or the other, hence must always make the choice to save lives rather than go on strike.
He maintained that medical workers from the highest to the lowest must always ask themselves about whether they could truly go on strike in view of their calling which was one that requires compassion and empathy.
According to him, the responsibility to save lives does not start and end with security men, bullets or bullet proof vests but through a robust healthcare system that lies in keeping the citizenry healthy and ensuring that the life expectancy margin is widened.
The Governor, who also responded to calls for autonomy for the school by a representative of the Students Union Government, said that the State Government was not interested in the day to day running of the school but would rather intervene only if there was a need to do so.
On calls for the expansion of the structures on the campus, the Governor explained that the present administration had already added two new blocks to the school which is made up of the classroom blocks, laboratories and Information Technology Center.
According to Fashola, the State Government is reluctant to pulling down some of the structures on the campus because they represent part of the history of Lagos and knocking them down would rob the next generation of such historically significant assets.
Speaking earlier, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Public Health, Dr (Mrs) Yewande Adeshina, urged the new graduates to always be polite and courteous at all time to their patients or those they are meant to provide care.
She stressed that they needed to empathize and be ready to care for their patients even before they decide to treat such people and that they should regard every person needing medical care as their immediate family or loved ones.
The Chairman of the Governing Council of the institution, Dr Abiola Tilley- Gyado, commended the Governor for his continued support for the institution, noting that the institution has produced quality graduates who can hold their own in their different fields of specialisation.
The graduating students were admitted into the Higher National Diploma, National Diploma and Certificate in various fields of health technology and environmental sciences.
The event was attended by many dignitaries and a large gathering of parents, family members of the graduating students and academic staff of the institution.