Olu Samuel, Lokoja
The Kogi State Government has said that there is no provision for any wage award for the removal of subsidy by the Federal government.
The state Commissioner for finance,Ashiru Idris stated this on Tuesday while speaking with journalists on the sideline of the citizens’s engagement on 2024 budget formulation in Lokoja, the state capital.
The Commissioner said that government has not made any provision for such award,not now,not in the 2924 budget.
According to him,”If you look at the salary structure of the state civil service,you will realise that it’s higher than most states in the country, therefore,apart from the palliative for the general public,there is no provision for further award to civil servants and so no provision for it to be captured in the budget.
“Our focus as a government is to create enabling environment for workers to operate with little or no hardships through the provision of social amenities and infrastructural facility that will make life better for the people”.
However, the state Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Gabriel Amari said, that was not what the Governor told them.
He said that the organised labour wrote to the government,and the governor promised to hold Consultative meeting with them after the election to consider their request.
“We have a copy of the letter and the reply of the governor with me,so I cannot react to the Commissioners statement until I hear from him directly,them I will make my comments” Amari said.
Earlier,the Chairperson,Kogi NGOs Network,KONGONET, Ambassador Idris Ozovehe Muraina called for the enactment of budget transparency laws that would guarantee the right to access budget Information and mandates the disclosure of key budget documents to create a legal framework for transparency and accountability.
He also advocated the strengthening of institutional capacity where government agencies responsible for budget formulation, implementation and oversight must be adequately responsible for budget effective management and reporting.