Imo State Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, is at the moment, said to be at crossroads over the directives given by President Muhammadu Buhari asking state governor’s to clear workers salaries before the end of the year.
Buhari had at a meeting with the governors ordered the Chief Executive of the states to pay workers before Christmas by directing the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN governor, Udoma, and Finance Minister, Adeosun to negotiate with them of Paris Refund.
Okorocha’s Imo State is one of the states where workers salaries and pensions are not only irregular but also not paid as at when due.
Trumpeta investigations reveal that in Imo State, Civil Servants and some categories of workers in the parastatals are yet to be paid their monthly salaries up to date. It would be recalled that the state was also among the ones indebted to their workforce, prompting the Buhari regime to release bailout fund in 2015. Despite the release of fund including batches of Paris Refund money to shore up the purse of the state, there are still pockets of complaints from a segment of the workers over unpaid salaries.
Trumpeta however gathered that workers in the state establishments, like the Imo State Polytechnic, Umuagwo have not been paid for over five months, while those of the Imo State University Teaching have been frolicking with demonstrations and protests concerning unpaid salaries running into several months. Among some of the parastatals, the outstanding salaries the government is owing the surviving ones are yet to be cleared before the Okorocha government started with a new regime of payment based on 70%. For instance in Imo water cooperation and Adapalm, they are yet to be up to date in terms of salary payment.
Okorocha’s worries over Buhari’s order, Government House sources say, emanates from the belief that states who do not clear workers salaries before the year ends may not be eligible to receive the latest Paris Refund and other grants from the Federal Government.
It was learnt that the inability of the state government to clear all outstanding salary arrears after bail out money and Paris Refund may raise accountability questions on the part of the Okorocha government when the CBN Governor, Finance Minister, and her Economic Planning Counterpart negotiate with the governors of the figure from the Paris club refund.
More disturbing to the Governor of Imo State is the fact that he is the Chairman of the APC Governor’s forum and a default on his part would rock the boat.
The governor is said to be troubled as he is expected to lead by example. The huge expenses to balance the salary arrears and need to be compliant to Buhari’s directed have put him in a serious dilemma.
Confirming Buhari’s stance, Okorocha was quoted to have told newsmen after the meeting with Mr. President in Aso Rock, thus, “According to Okorocha “It was a brief meeting between the Governors of Nigeria and the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The discussion centered on basically the end of the year and the President himself had expressed the need to make sure that every Nigerian especially the workers have a beautiful Christmas.
“The issues of the outstanding Paris Club was discussed and that was taken care of to make sure that workers in various states everywhere in the country get to celebrate the Christmas.
“We also used the opportunity to review our working relationship with the President from the states and we found out that we are in harmony. There is no difference between us and the president. Everybody seems to be happy working together.
“But particularly, we commended the president for the miracle of getting Nigeria out of recession within such a short time. We commended Mr. President and everybody left quite happy.
“We are looking at getting the balance of Paris Club refund thrashed out once and for all. We also made a request for Mr. President’s approval that the balance should form part of our 2018 budget, because we can’t include it until we are sure that the money is coming. That was also sorted out.
“So, as it is now, the issue of workers took the centre stage because Mr. President felt much concerned about those who depend on their salaries to feed their families and pay their house rent and he had the assurance of governors that we will meet up those obligations.
“It was emphasized that States and Federal governments must work together to get Nigeria out of its present economic predicament to make Nigeria a better society for all of us.”
When asked whether the President ordered that all salary arrears will be cleared by each state before Christmas, Okorocha responded, “Yes, with the Paris Club coming, every state must ensure that workers get their salaries”
