Lagos Tells 341 Retiring Officers: Plan For Health, Not Just Pension

Three hundred and forty one officers preparing to leave the Unified Local Government Service in Lagos State were told this week that the years immediately before their last day matter more for their wellbeing than the day itself.

The officers gathered at the Odi-Olowo/Ojuwoye Local Council Development Area Secretariat in Ilupeju for a pre-retirement training organised by the Office of Local Government Establishments and Training, known as OLGE&T. The session carried the theme "Beyond Retirement: Preparing For A Healthy, Purposeful And Prosperous Chapter."

Lagos State Head of Service, Olabode Agoro, who was represented at the event by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Physical Planning, Wasiu Olayinka, said health should sit at the centre of any exit plan.

"You need to prioritize your health, as retirement provides an opportunity to pay greater attention to your physical, mental, and emotional well-being," Agoro said.

He asked the officers to keep up healthy habits, undertake regular medical checkups and set aside time for activities that support a balanced life once the structure of daily work ends. "The objective is not merely to retire from work, but to retire into a life that is healthy, meaningful, and worthwhile," he said.

Agoro extended the advice beyond the room, telling officers who are not yet due for retirement to begin their own planning now rather than waiting for a retirement date to appear on the calendar. He said retirement "does not happen by chance" and requires early sensitisation and adequate preparation.

The Permanent Secretary of OLGE&T, Toyin Ogunlana, framed the workshop as part of a standing commitment by her office to ensure that Lagos workers are not simply released from service but supported into what comes next.

She credited the retiring officers with years of knowledge, skill and experience given to public service and to the development of local communities, and pushed back on the idea that an exit from government work closes off usefulness. "Retirement may bring an end to active public service, but it does not have to bring an end to productivity, relevance or purpose," Ogunlana said.

She listed a range of options for the officers to consider once they leave, from starting a long delayed business to learning a new skill, investing, mentoring younger people, serving their communities or simply spending more time with family. "Make room for the things that years of demanding public service may have placed on the back burner," she said.

Ogunlana repeated her caution against last minute preparation. "Do not wait until your last day in service before you begin thinking about your next chapter. The best retirement is one that is planned for while you are still in active service," she said.

She told the officers the state recognises what they have put in. "You have spent many years serving the government and our communities. Now, it is time to prepare for a chapter in which you can invest more deliberately in yourself, your family, your interests and your future. We appreciate your service. We value your contributions and we want the next chapter of your life to be one you enter with confidence, dignity and purpose," she said, adding that they should "begin to see retirement not as an ending, but as a new chapter waiting to be written."

Some officers who had already retired and attended the event as guests added their own advice, urging the departing group to treat retirement as a transition rather than an end to active living and to keep up regular exercise instead of settling into a sedentary routine.