Civil servants in Kogi State would soon have cause to smile as the state government has assured that it would soon release funds for the settlement of all arrears of salaries even as it has assured that the era of “traffic payment” would soon be a thing of the past.
The commissioner for Finance and Economic Development, Hon. Asiwaju Ashiru Idris who gave the assurance during a ministerial media briefing in Lokoja, said modalities are been put in place for the commencement of payment of outstanding salary arrears in 90 days.
According to him, the state seems set to begin to enjoy the dividends of the reform programme initiated by the Governor Yahaya Bello-led administration following the gains recorded by the state economic team, growth in the Internal Generated Revenue (IGR), as well as the gradual clearing of the liability of the state.
Hon. Idris while reacting to the debt profile of the state put at N102 billion by the Debt Management Office (DMO), said the amount was actually it’s domestic debt, noting that amount was inherited from the previous administration.
He further emphasized that the current administration in the state had not taken any external loan since it assumed office two and a half years ago, stressing that the bulk of funds that accrued to the State were channeled to making life more meaningful to the citizens.
The commissioner put the current wage bill of the state at N2.67 billion for staff strength of 13,723 saying that the administration had continued to place premium on the welfare and well being of the citizens.
He revealed that the state government was able to save over N300 million from the staff audit it initiated 2 years ago.
He also used the forum to retaliate the present administration’s resolve to better the living condition of the masses, adding that the state was set to embark on the rehabilitation of 500km of road which would cut across the 21 Local Government Areas.
Hon. Idris who described accountability and transparency as core values of the present administration in the state, assured the people of government’s readiness to plug all financial leakages as well as promote programs and policies that would enhance good governance.
On his part, Director General on Information Services and Grassroots Sensitization, Mr. Abdulkarim Abdulmalik said the media briefing became expedient to sensitive and update the people of government’s programmes and policies.
THE GRAPH
Be the first to comment