The Kogi Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello has assured workers and pensioners in the State of their salaries and arrears before the end of 2017, as he has sourced the sum of N16billion to make the payment.
The Governor said N6billion of the money was Kogi State’s share of the Paris Club bailout fund from the Federal Government, while the remaining N10billion was gotten from another source.
Bello, who made this known at a “One-Day Interactive Forum on Value Re-Orientation, Skills Matching and Decent Job Creation,” organised by the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), Thursday in Lokoja, thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for helping troubled states to come out of their financial problems.
“Mr President in his magnanimity, at any point in time, when either I as Governor of Kogi State or all governors in Nigeria are running into trouble, he will always bail us out. He has graciously given me N6billion. And I have sourced for another N10billion; with this we are going to clear all the civil servants salaries before the end of the year. Both the civil servants and the pensioners will be paid. We are not going into the new year with salary arrears,” the Governor assured.
He ceased the opportunity to reassure Buhari of Kogi State’s commitment to ensure he returns for in 2019 as President and Commander in Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Insha’Allah not only in 2019 will President Buhari win, I think some few hours ago, in Kabba, the people of West, East and Central Senatorial Districts endorsed the President as their candidate for 2019 presidential election. Indeed the people of Kogi State in general are urging the President to contest in 2019. We will be all out to vote for him. In Kogi State, Buhari does not need to come and campaign,” he said.
The Governor jokingly said the constitution would be amended to make Buhari Nigerian’s live president, saying he has done well for Nigeria in a very short while, and cannot be allowed to go even in 2023.
He thanked the State Minister for Labour and Employment, Professor Stephen Ocheni for his good work at the federal level and for bringing the NDE job creation programme to the state.
“I want to thank Mr President for trusting my judgement and for reposing his confidence in me to make a recommendation for ministerial position; and today we are proud of our own, Professor Ocheni for his good work. He will continue to make us proud, and he will continue to make President Buhari Proud,” he said.
