From Abdulrazaq Mungadi, Gombe
Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State has approved over N5.2 billion for the payment of gratuity and other entitlements owed to retirees in the state.
According to the state government, of the N5.2 billion, N2.291 billion is earmarked for the payment of gratuity and other entitlements of the state’s 2018 retirees, while N3 billion will be paid to retired local government workers across the 11 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state. The payment is expected to cover a large number of retirees who have served the state for years and have been waiting to receive their dues.
This was disclosed by the commissioner of finance, Malam Gambo Magaji while speaking at a press briefing shortly after the State Executive Council (SEC) meeting on Wednesday in Gombe. The Commissioner explained that the approval is to clear the 2018 backlog of the retired workers’ entitlement. “If you recall, the Governor has continuously paying and reducing the gratuity backlog, since assumption of office”.
Meanwhile, the state’s commissioner of Local Government and Community Development, Abdulkadir Mohammed Waziri added that the SEC also approved a memo presented by the ministry for the payment of retired local government workers in the state. “Over N3 billion was considered and approved for the payment of the local government gratuity backlog. We are hoping that each of the 11 LGAs clear about years backlog in the payment of the gratuity,” Waziri told newsmen.
Commenting on other approvals secured by his ministry, the Commissioner of Finance stated that there was an approval of N332 million for the payment of compensation to property owners at Bauchi and Dukku motor parks in Gombe metropolis. He said, “The governor had constituted a task force/committee to assess properties in those locations, after which they submitted their report and a compensation committee was asked to do a review that was today submitted to the council and N332 million was approved for the payment of the compensation. This is to provide for the relocation of the motor parks to the Mega Motorpark that has been completed by this administration.”