The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF), Folasade Yemi-Esan, has urged all civil servants to embrace regular sporting activities to make them fit and productive in their jobs.

Mrs Yemi-Esan made the call on Saturday at the Aerobics and Sports events at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium Abuja, being part of activities to mark the Civil Service Week.

The event featured 100 meters for both male and female workers, permanent secretaries and directors across ministries, departments and agencies within Abuja.

It also featured football matches between ministries of defence and education, as well as permanent secretaries and directors.

Mr Yemi-Esan, who served as goal keeper and the captain of the match between the permanent secretaries and directors, underscored the need for such exercises for workers to be highly productive in their assignment to the country.

“For civil servants to be able to perform and to be productive, they must be healthy.

“And so, the Aerobic and all the sporting activities are to encourage civil servants to participate frequently in sporting activities because a healthy mind must live in a healthy body.”

She, nevertheless, said the event was also meant to expose the talented workers in area of sports as most of them were rarely known in such field.

“Most of the times civil servants are not seen, are not heard and so we use this week to project civil servants.

“For the country to know that there is a workforce that  behind the policy implementation of government.”

The HOS added that the event would be an annual exercise whenever Nigeria was marking its civil service week.

Meanwhile the permanent secretaries’ team was presented with a trophy for winning the directors team with two goals to one, and Ministry of Defence was also awarded with the trophy by wining Education through penalty shootouts.

Speaking also on the significance of the event, the Accountant-General of the Federation, Oluwatoyin Madein, said the fitness gained by the civil servants at the event was overwhelming, owning to participation in several sporting activities.

Mrs Madein explained further that the events were for health improvement of the workers who are working in utmost everyday of their lives.

“This is a day set aside to make the civil servants to come out and exercise their body, exercise their brains and all the parts of their body to keep them fit for the tasks ahead. ”

She advised the heads of parastatal agencies to key into organising members of staff of their organisations to monthly exercise so as to keep their workers fit for their office assignment.

Felix Okoh, one of the participants,  said he was thrilled to be part of the event, adding that involving in such exercise had a huge gain and is one of the important things one could do to sustain his life.

A good number of permanent secretaries, directors, and different ministries including sports stakeholders are present at the event.

 (NAN)