Layi Olanrewaju, Ilorin
Kwara State government yesterday said it met about N21billion backlog of arrears of local government staff gratuities from 2009 when it was inaugurated in May, 2019.
Executive Secretary, Kwara State Local Government Staff Pension Board, Smaila Oyelowo, stated this while testifying before the Justice Mathew Adewara-led panel of inquiry into the alleged diversion of N300million from the local government funds. He said the N30million released monthly for gratuities before May 2019 had been increased to N100million to gradually defray part of the outstanding debts.
“The present administration inherited N21,516,812 as backlog of gratuities from 2009. We approached the state government to jerk up money being released for the payment of gratuities and that was expressly granted. Now, on monthly basis, we are receiving N100million to settle gratuities. But because of COVID-19 pandemic, we got N60million in June. In July this has been raised to N100million,” he said.
Oyelowo told the panel that the board was unaware of any deduction of their money.
“We only prepare vouchers for the payment of pension for the consultant engaged for its payments while we concentrate on the issues of gratuities. The board does the collection of details of new pensioners, upgrades the payroll, and forwards to the consultant for payment,” he said.
He, however, advocated the adoption of contributory pension scheme as a solution to the crisis.
Bank managers and directors of personnel management from the five local government areas in Kwara North also testified before the panel and described the alleged monthly diversion of N300million from local government funds as baseless and unfounded.
Chairman of the panel, Justice Mathew Adewara reiterated that the panel was on a fact-finding mission and that no one was put on trial.
“As you are aware, this panel was set up by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and the mandate is to examine all the relevant books, internally generated revenue, federation allocation and how those funds are being used. This panel is to probe and find the veracity of the claim that N300million was being diverted by the Kwara State government from local governments funds. Nobody is on trial. Nobody is being prosecuted. We are only on a fact finding mission. We are to find out the correctness of your books,” he said.