N1.8tr Bailout: 17 States Still Owe Salaries, Pensions

• N1.8tr Bailout: 17 States Still Owe Salaries, Pensions

Despite Federal Government efforts at ensuring pensioners and civil servants get their entitlements and salaries on time, a survey conducted by BudgIt Foundation showed seventeen states are still owing from one month to over 35 months.

According to the Foundation, states like Delta, Imo, Abia, Osun, Plateau, Bayelsa, and Ekiti are still owing several months despite Federal Government spending N1.8 trillion on bailouts.

In a statement signed by the Foundation, 12 states were yet to fully offset the amount owed secondary school teachers, while midwives were also being owed.

The statement signed by Ayomide Faleye, further stated that the workers surveyed disclosed that they were warned to keep the information from the public.

The group said: “BudgIT, worried that some states are yet to fully offset the outstanding amount owed pensioners and civil servants despite series of bailouts aimed at offsetting the liabilities, recently conducted a survey. The survey aimed at ascertaining the frequency and magnitude of challenges civil servants and pensioners encounter. The survey focused on three different categories of workers in all 36 states namely: primary and secondary school teachers, state midwives and state secretariat workers. Also, attention was paid to ascertain if retirees at the state level are receiving pensions as at when due.

“From the survey carried out, we discovered that 12 states are yet to offset the amount owed secondary school teachers fully and many states are threatening workers to keep the information away from public domain. Notable among states with outstanding liabilities to secondary teachers are Osun and Kogi states. Osun State has been paying secondary school teachers above level 8 only a fraction of their salaries and entitlements for the last 30 months. Cumulatively, Osun State is owing secondary school teachers above level 8 about 15 months salaries. Other states with outstanding liabilities include Abia, Benue, Bayelsa, Kwara, Imo, Ekiti, Oyo, Ondo and Zamfara. Kogi State, for instance, is owing teachers about 13 months’ salaries, according to the response given by secondary school teachers during the survey.

“Midwives, whose responsibility include attending to issues around pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum, women’s sexual and reproductive health and newborn care, are also bugged down by issues, such as failure of some states to pay salaries and emoluments as at when due. Midwives were questioned during the survey across the 36 states. BudgIT discovered that 10 states are owing midwives salaries as at close of business on September 24, 2018.”