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From Tony Osauzo, Benin
Edo State civil servants have expressed appreciation to Governor Monday Okpebholo for the payment of the 13th-month salary, describing the gesture as timely and morale-boosting.
At the Edo State Secretariat and several ministries, including the Ministry of Information and Strategy; Ministry of Lands and Housing; Ministry of Environment and Sustainability; and the Ministry of Education, Iyaro, workers confirmed receipt of the payment and commended the state government.
Reacting to the payment at the Ministry of Information and Strategy, Mrs Rose Imonikhe, Director of Orientation, said the alert came as a pleasant surprise.
“I woke up this morning, it was the alert that woke me up, the 13th-month salary. I’m grateful to the governor for what he has done. You can see me smiling, and that is how other officers in the Edo State civil service are smiling.”
Mrs Imonikhe noted that the payment would ease financial pressure on workers during the festive season and beyond.
“This Christmas period, most people must have spent their December salaries. So this will help them enter the new year with something in their pockets. Those with children’s school fees to pay can do so without stress, and others who are renewing rents will also benefit. This 13th-month salary will go very far.
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“The governor has played his part; it is left for civil servants to do theirs by being more committed. He is in a haste to deliver the dividends of democracy, and the civil service is the channel through which this can be achieved,” Mrs Imonikhe added.
Similar sentiments were expressed by other civil servants at the Ministry of Lands and Housing, including Beatrice Ihulde, Precious Abu, Bridget Igbinovia and Onyinyechi Florence, who described the payment as a clear demonstration of concern for workers’ welfare.
At the Ministry of Environment and Sustainability, the Director of Administration, Mrs Egbe Jocy, also commended the government, saying the initiative would strengthen morale and productivity across the service.
Many civil servants agree that the gesture has brought relief and renewed confidence in the government’s people-centred approach to governance.
Recall that Governor Okpebholo, shortly after he assumed office in November 2024, had implemented the 13th-month salary payment for the civil service in the state.
