Hakeem Gbadamosi, Akure
Ondo state governor, Rotimi Akeredolu has disclosed that his administration has been releasing the sum of N2.4 billion annually to offset gratuities of retired civil servants in the state to ensure the retirees enjoy the fruits of their hard work.
Speaking on behalf of the governor, the Head of Service (HoS), Pastor Kayode Ogundele, stated that apart from payment of gratuities, the Akeredolu-led government is not owing pensioners in the state, saying the state is up-to-date with the payment of pensions
According to the HoS, the government has approved increase in the pension allowances of the retirees in the state in line with the consequential adjustment arising from the implementation of the national minimum wage in 2019 in the country.
Ogundele said that all the backlogs of seven months owed by the immediate past government had been cleared, saying the present government has been giving priority to the welfare of the workers in the state and prompt payment of salaries.
He said: “Mr. Governor assured the workers and labour leaders that arrears of salaries owed by the previous administration will be fully paid. By December 2022, we had already started planning for January. As of February, before the election, the Ondo State Government had paid February salaries. We have no outstanding debt.
“As he (Akeredolu) was clearing the seven months’ arrears he inherited, he was also paying the normal salary. There was no issue with a salary delay or any outstanding salary within that period, even though he was clearing the arrears. All the salaries due to this administration have been paid.
“Also, pensioners in the state have been commending Mr. Governor. Just last week, Mr. Governor approved the increase in their arrears based on the 2019 minimum wage. The implication of this for the state is that every month we will be incurring an additional N100 million to pay the incremental arrears.
“Just last year, we had issues with Owena Press retirees. Most of them had not been paid their gratuities for years. Last year, Mr. Governor got the file, and approved it straight away. Now, all the retirees have all gotten their gratuities.
“Based on the resources available to the government, we have been putting aside a certain amount to clear the backlog of gratuities in other sectors. As we are paying their pensions every month, we also take care of their gratuities every month.
There are so many of them that have been there since 2011. You can imagine the number of people that have retired from 2011 to date, but since this administration came on board, it has been providing for that.
“Every month we make provisions for them. From what we do, by annual calculation, the state government is paying nothing less than N2.4 billion apart from gratuities.”
He commended Akeredolu’s government over the innovative strategies deployed in boosting the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the state, disclosing that Akeredolu has vowed that the delayed payment of salaries of workers will not repeat itself under his watch.
He said “The government has been going out of its way to ensure that it prioritizes the welfare of workers.
” What we witnessed in recent times is that outside of what we get from Abuja, the Ondo State Government has actually put a lot of structure in place to ensure that our IGR also receives a boost, and it has been seriously boosted.
“There is no doubt about the fact that it is one of the contributions of public servants. They have also seen that if their welfare is being taken care of by the government, they must ensure that they also show it through their productivity and this is what we have been seeing. Every time we hear stories of improvement in our IGR.
“So we have been able to balance this with what we are getting from Abuja because Mr. Governor has actually made up his mind that nothing will make him again have a situation where workers will be complaining of salaries not being paid.
“He had vowed that would not happen again. That is why the issue of their emoluments has been prioritized, and that is why we are having the kind of situation we have now, a very peaceful relationship between government and workers.
“When you look at the facts and figures, when you compare Ondo State and other states in the south-west, we are far ahead. In 2019, we promoted over 7,000 workers with full financial benefits. 4,185 workers were promoted in 2020. In 2021, the total number of workers promoted was 3,451. In 2022, we 3,950. As a whole in 2023 weeks promoted over 8,415 workers.
“In the teaching service, just about two years ago, we recruited over 1,000 teachers to fill some gaps in the primary schools. The teaching service in the secondary schools is making efforts to ensure gaps are also filled.
“We also have some we take in from other states on interstate transfers. And that is also a way of filling in some gaps. When we take these people in, the government keeps paying their salaries.
“It is not as if those states will be taking care of them. In the civil service or the public service, recruitment has been done based on the exigency or the need.”
