…Ondo clears LG, teacher’s arrears
…Osun decentralises verification
…A’Ibom approves N1.6bn to settle arrears
…Abia to clear arrears after verification

By Dayo Johnson, Henry Ojelu, Shina Abubakar, Chioma Onuegbu & Steve Oko

Following Vanguard’s special report on the humongous amounts state governments owe pensioners across the country, some states, including Ondo, Osun, Akwa Ibom and Abia, have pledged to urgently address the situation.

Akeredolu clears salary, pension arrears

Ondo State governor, Rotimi Akeredolu yesterday said his state had paid all outstanding salary arrears of local government and primary school teachers as well as pensioners owed by the previous administration.

Speaking during a briefing on the palliatives distribution strategy and implementation, Information and Orientation Commissioner, Mrs Bamidele Ademola-Olateju, said: “ Mr Governor has cleared the backlog of salaries arrears owed all local government staff, primary school teachers and pensioners between 2016 and 2017.

According to her, the previous administration owed these categories of staff seven months arrears of salaries, which the present administration of Governor Akeredolu has now cleared.

“These months are July – December 2016 and January 2017. The government is already making arrangements also to offset all arrears of gratuities of retired LG staff and primary school teachers which dates back to 2012.”

Adeleke decentralises exercise

Following inconveniences suffered by pensioners undergoing forensic audit in Osun State, the state government has ordered the exercise to be decentralized immediately.

Some pensioners during the audit in Osogbo, Osun State capital, yesterday, collapsed, with many others suffering from different kinds of exhaustion resulting in an abrupt end of the exercise.

However, the state governor in a statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, ordered that the senior citizens stopped coming to the state capital for the exercise.

The statement read: “This is to inform pensioners of all cadres to stay back in their respective areas as the state governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has approved a conditional decentralization of the pension audit.

“The auditing team will conduct the screening at the headquarters of each federal constituency, while mobile calls will also be used to access bedridden pensioners. Pensioners should, therefore, stop coming to Osogbo.

“Under the adjusted model, pensioners are to be screened at the headquarters of their federal constituencies. This is to be preceded by pre-screening visitations to the selected centres at the headquarters.

A’Ibom approves additional N1.6bn gratuities

Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State also yesterday said he had approved the release of an additional N1.6 billion for instalment payment of arrears of gratuities.

Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. Ekerete Udoh, who announced this in a statement, disclosed that the amount covered retired local government and primary school teachers, as well as retired civil servants.

He stated: “In line with his promise to continue to pay down the arrears of retired workers, Akwa Ibom State governor, Pastor Umo Eno, has approved the prompt release of an additional N1.6 billion.

“The amount is designed to continue to pay down the arrears of gratuities of retired primary school teachers, local government workers and civil servants in the state.

Abia to clear pension arrears after verification

On its part, the Abia State government yesterday reiterated its resolve to clear the backlog of pension arrears accumulated over the years.

Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, who disclosed this in Umuahia after the State Executive Council meeting, reassured that the arrears of pension would be cleared before the end of the year.

He said as soon as the ongoing verification of pensioners expected to end next week was concluded, action on the liquidation of the accumulated arrears would commence.

Kanu said: “Once we’re done with the verification, the government will pay off all outstanding pensions. It was a promise made during the campaigns, and the governor, Dr Alex Otti, has vowed to keep it. The era of promise and failure is over!”