Kebbi HoS bows out after attaining 60 years in service
From Olanrewaju Lawal, Birnin Kebbi
The Head of Service (HoS) of Kebbi State, Alhaji Saffiyanu Garba Bena, has retired from service after attaining the age of 60.
Bena handed over to the most senior Permanent Secretary in the state, Hajia Aisha Usman, who is the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, to serve as the Acting Head of Service pending the appointment of a substantive replacement.
While speaking during the handing over ceremony held at the Cabinet Office, Birnin Kebbi, Bena thanked Governor Nasir Idris for the confidence reposed in him throughout his tenure as the HoS and all the civil servants in the state for their cooperation.
According to him, “I am handing over today to the most senior civil servant, who is the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Hajia Aisha Usman. The handing over today is in line with the tradition of the civil service, giving the opportunity to the most senior person to serve as the Acting Head of Service pending the appointment of the new substantive Head of Service.
“So, it is in line with the rules of the civil service that I am handing over to her, being the most senior civil servant. We started together and are almost leaving together, but she has a few months to spend before she retires.
“My retirement from the service is not as a result of putting in 35 years in service but is a result of [reaching] 60 years of age. So, whichever comes first, a civil servant should go. So, I’m going out of the service because I’m 60 years old today, due to the rule of the civil service.”
Bena, who handed over the affairs of the office of the Head of Service to Hajiya Aisha Usman, commended all his staff for their cooperation and urged them to support the Acting Head of Service throughout her tenure in the office.
He thanked the state governor, Dr. Nasir Idris, for giving him the mandate to serve as the Permanent HoS and for allowing him to retire in this position.
In her reaction, the Acting Head of Service, Hajiya Aisha Usman, commended the outgoing HoS for his meritorious service to the state and promised not to disappoint the confidence the state governor has reposed in her as Acting Head of Service.
She promised to do her best throughout her period in the office and appealed to the staff of the office to give her their maximum cooperation to allow her to excel in her new assignment.
