By Bashir Bello

KANO – Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano State said his administration has set aside the whopping sum of N6 billion to pay gratuities of over five thousand retired civil servants in the state.

The governor who made this known in a chat with journalists in the state, said the decision was reached at the weekly Executive Council meeting on Wednesday.

Governor Yusuf who since assumption of office had expressed displeasure over inheriting a backlog of gratuities from the past administration, amounting to over N40 billion, however promised to clear the backlog within two years.

The governor said he had utmost concern about the plight of retired civil servants who finished serving their state but were not paid their entitlements.

“I always sleep and wake up with the issue of gratuities of retired civil servants in my mind. I always think of how to settle and clear this backlog.

“I frequently summon meetings with the Accountant General, Chairman Pension Trust fund and others to assist me on the way forward.

“It is in the course of this meeting we decided to start paying those of low grade level, whose amounts have not exceeded N1 million or little above N1 million down to like N150, 000, or N250,000.

“I asked them to compile their list and we have got the names of over 5,000 of them.

“By next week, they will receive their gratuities in sha Allah. The total amount as we calculated is about N6 billion and it has since been approved at the Executive Council meeting. Let me also tell you that we have the money at hand. We have not borrowed a dime to lay this gratuity,” Yusuf stated.

The governor however restated his commitment to serving people of Kano State while soliciting for their maximum cooperation in order to bring about the desired development in the state.