Majority of the state across the federation, have utilised the second
tranche of the Paris Club refund they received to clear the arrears of
their serving and retired workers’ entitlements.
A survey carried
out by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) indicated that 68% of State
governments adhered to the advice given the Federal Government on the
fund.
The survey also indicated that some of the workers and
pensioners were owed salaries and pensions for periods ranging between
two and 11 months.
However, in most states where the arrears of
salaries, pensions and gratuities have been paid, some civil servants
and retirees, especially those in the council areas, are still being
owed.
The Federal Government in July released about N243.79
billion to the states as the second tranche of the refund, having
earlier released N388.30 billion to them in December 2016.
The
funds were released following protests by the states against
over-deductions from their allocations for external debt services
between 1995 and 2002.
The federal government had advised the
state governments to use between 50 and 75 per cent of their shares of
the refund to clear the arrears of salaries, pensions and gratuities
they owed.
NAN reports that 15 of the 22 (68 per cent) states
surveyed so far, have utilised the money in settling the arrears of the
entitlements while nine have not.
Those that paid are: Jigawa,
Yobe and Adamawa in the North-East; Kwara in the North-Central; all
states in the South-South except Cross River; Abia in the South-East;
and all states in the South-West.
Bauchi, Gombe and Borno in the
North-East; Cross River in the South-South; as well as Enugu, Anambra
and Ebonyi in the South-East have yet to pay the arrears.
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