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In the spirit of Christmas, the Oyo State government has paid two months’ salary arrears for workers in the state public and civil service.
The Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr. Toye Arulogun, disclosed this on Tuesday in Ibadan at the Annual Lecture /Award of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ministry of Information Chapel.
He said the government paid June and July 2016 salaries.
He said that the government has been doing a lot of financial re-engineering in order to meet its obligations to the workforce and the entire citizens of the state.
The commissioner revealed that the government is constantly seeking ways, means and solutions to offset the outstanding workers salaries and ensure prompt payment thereafter.
He said: “The Senator Abiola Ajimobi administration is resolute in making life easier and meaningful for the workers and by extension the entire citizenry by meeting its obligations promptly. Also, the government is very passionate about the welfare of workers and the people of the state in general. We are not comfortable with the situation of things in the state as well and we are already putting machineries in motion to clear the outstanding salaries of the workforce.
“However, in the spirit of the season, the governor has approved payment of two months salaries to facilitate the joyful celebration of the yuletide season and usher in the new year. We are genuinely concerned about the welfare of the citizens and wish to use this opportunity to restate the Oyo State Government’s commitment to improving the lives of our people. Ours is a government with a people-centric focus which places a high premium on the contributions of its workforce.”
He added: “Right now, it is obvious that the government has not reduced the salaries of the state’s workers except those of the political appointees, who were paid 50 per cent of their May salaries as announced recently while the workers collected their full salaries. The June and July salaries are being paid in full too”.
Arulogun also explained that the state government was yet to receive its share of the Paris Club over-deduction funds and pledged that the government would continue to meet regularly with its stakeholders to keep them abreast of the finances and developments in the state.