A letter by a group of unemployed environmental health graduates to Lagos State Speaker

A PASSIONATE APPEAL FOR THE INCLUSION OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH OFFICER CADRE APPLICANTS IN THE ON-GOING RECRUITMENT EXERCISE OF THE LAGOS STATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT SERVICE COMMISSION

Greetings to your highly esteemed office. We applaud your exemplary contributions in paddling the affairs of the state to birthing a new social order of monumental infrastructural development and economic growth, with resonated enhanced standard of living of Lagosians.

Following the job advert placement on print and electronic media by the Lagos State Local Government Service Commission which was slated for a period five days (25th – 29th September, 2017), we, the Environmental Health graduates made our application entries as directed by the commission.

Invitation of applicants for screening/recruitment by the Commission commenced last week through e-mail and SMS correspondence. While other cadres are being invited for screening/recruitment, the environmental health cadre applicants are being sidelined and in breach of the Local Government Schemes of Service 2006, Non-Environmental Health graduates including those with degrees in Anthropology, biotechnology, sociology, crop protection, etc are being invited for interview and placement as Environmental Health Officers while thousands of the real graduates of the profession who applied were not invited. Moreover, it is expedient to point out here that these Non-Environmental Health graduates lack in outright term the requisite competence and credentials to function statutorily and desirably as Environmental Health Officers.

We would like to reassure the state government of our willingness to gainfully contribute our quota in the enhancement of public service delivery, to the good people of Lagos state. It is also noteworthy that some of our members are not only Higher National Diploma (H.N.D) holders from recognized schools/colleges of health technology but graduates with additional qualifications such as bachelor and master's degrees with excellent grades, and have been serving the state government on a non-pensionable basis for almost a decade.

Additionally, we actively participated in the successful intervention programmes being organized by the state and federal governments in the epidemiological control of outbreaks of Lassa fever, Ebola Virus, Cholera and some other diseases. We are not in doubt that we would also be relevant in the arrest of this  recent outbreak of monkeypox viral infection.

For the avoidance of doubt, an Environmental Health Officer is a qualified graduate from either the university or school/college of health technology and duly certified by the West Africa Health Examination Board (WAHEB) and Environmental Health Officers Registration Council of Nigeria (EHORECON). Our job specifications are well spelt-out by the World Health Organization (WHO) which aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.

Finally, in the light of the above, we humbly request for your swift intervention on the delay in the job interview being experienced by our members, because we believe in your leadership, spirit of equality and goodwill for a sustained serene environmental health of the state.

Yours Faithfully,

_________________

BASHORUN N.O

Coordinator.

Cc:    The Executive Governor of Lagos State,

State House,

Alausa – Ikeja,

Lagos State.

          Honourable Segun Olulade,

          Chairman, House Committee on Health,

          Alausa – Ikeja,

          Lagos State.

Hon. Saka Fafunmi

Chairman, House Committee on Environment.

Lagos State House of Assembly.

          Hounorable Agunbiade Sunai (SOB),

          Majority Leader,

          Lagos State House of Assembly,

          Alausas – Ikeja,

          Lagos State.

                               

Commissioner of Police,

          Lagos State.        

          The President,

          Environmental Health Officers Association of Nigeria (EHOAN),

          Oshodi Isolo,

          Lagos State.

          The Chairman,

          Medical  and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN),

          Surulere,

          Lagos State.

          Chairman,

Lagos State Local Government Service Commission,

Old Secretariat,

P.W.D;

Lagos State.

Barr. Festus Keyamo (SAN),

1, Festus Keyamo Lane, off Gbagada Expressway,

Lagos State.

Barr. Femi Falana (SAN),

Old Secretariat Road,

G.R.A; Ikeja, Lagos.

Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu,

(Governor Emeritus),

National Leader,

All Progressive Congress (APC)

Bourdilion Road,

Osborne, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Unemployed Environmental Health Graduate Visits Lagos Speaker

A group of unemployed environmental health graduates had visit and present their petitions to the Speaker, Lagos state house of assembly on their plight on the issue of ongoing recruitment by Lagos state local government service commission.The group is led by Nureni Bashorun whom stated that they have been working with local governments in Lagos for some years as casual staff with the hope that if vacancies exists, they will be absorbed, fortunately, the service commission placed an advert which includes environmental health officers, but those that applied were not call for interview while all other cadres were call, thus giving room of rumour and speculation that we would not be part of the recruitment.

"Why would they not invites us, having made the application open for everybody. They should create a level playing ground and allow everyone who is qualified to participate in the ongoing screening and interview", Nureni Bashorun said.

Responding, the speaker, Mudashiru Obasa, represented by Mr Segun Olulade, Chairman House committee on health said he will look in to the grievances of the group and do justice accordingly.

"We will contact your representatives and also call on other parties to explain the rationale behind it so that we can be on the same page....we will get back to you very soon", the speaker said.

Read the letter in full in the next post.

EHSAN organizes conference in Ibadan

Environmental health Scientists Association Of Nigeria [EHSAN]

The conference on Environmental Health Sciences is organized to increase awareness on, deepen knowledge for and stimulate action towards various primordial and emerging issues of environmental health for the purpose of ensuring environmental quality and safeguarding public health through evidence sharing from basic, applied and translational research.

The theme for the 2017 conference is ‘New Frontiers in Safety and Toxicology for Environmental health Management’. The conference will address salient and topical issues in the field of safety and toxicology particularly as it bothers on exposures to hazards and the vulnerability of the public to a myriad of deleterious health outcomes including cancers.

Delegates at conference are invited from amongst environmental scientist, researchers, public health professionals, safety professionals, policy makers, students and individuals from governmental/non-governmental and community-based organizations respectively.

Conference Objectives

·        Buildings bridges among different scientists, professionals, practitioners, and other stakeholders in environment, safety and public health fields;

·        Sharing of knowledge and skills during scientific and exhibitions sessions;

·        Networking among delegates during technical sessions and social tours;

·        Expanding new research horizon among scholars; and

·        Fostering multi-centre and inter regional collaborations.

Conference Sub-themes/Speakers

Air toxics, Man and Cancer, Prof R. Vermeulen, Institute of Risk Assessment Sciences, [IRAS], Netherlands;

Nano Technology: Toxicological and Safety Concern, Prof A. Dhawan, Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, India;

Children, School Environment and Safety, Prof Louise Stroud, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa;

Water Safety: Implications for Households and Eco Tourism, Prof MKC Sridhar, University of Ibadan, Nigeria;

Food Safety, Chemical Exposure and Toxicovigilance, Prof Eo Farombi, University of Ibadan, Nigeria;

Hazardous and Health Care Waste, Engr. Olabode Oladeji, Oiloff Nigeria Limited;

Soil Health and Biosafety, Prof Kehinde Olayinka, University of Lagos, Nigeria;

Industrial Hygiene and Safety, Dr A Amadi, HSE Manager, LNG Nigeria; and

Households-level Toxic: Safety and Health Issues, Dr G.R.E.E. Ana, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.

The conference schedule to holds on 20-24^th November, 2017

Registration is N20, 000.00 for participants, N10, 000.00 for students and USD500 for foreign participants.

Payment can be made to:

Account Name:                   Environmental Health Scientists Association, Nigeria

Bank:                                  

Access Bank Plc, UCH branch, Ibadan

Account Number:              0 7 2 7 6 8 3 2 6 7

Teller of payment should be scanned and sent to adejumo_mumuni@yahoo.com and oyinobisesan@gmail.com

Environmental and Public Health Watch Blog is No 55 on the web

I am happy to inform our readers that that this blog is selected among the Top 75 Public Health Blogs on the web. Specifically, it is No 55 among the 75, hence the blog has the honour to use the badge below.
These could not have possible without your efforts of always standing by the blog in making available the information you needed.
Even though update on the blog is not regular, it is my wish to continue updating daily, therefore, readers should bear with me.
The blog appreciated this honour and thanks our readers.

55	Environmental and Public Health Watch+ Follow tsaftarmuhalli.blogspot.com About Blog - This blog brings environmental and Public health issues as it happens in Nigeria. Frequency - about 1 post per month Since - Sep 2005