By Ibraheem Soluadeen.
The Kwara State Governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, has promised to clear all outstanding salaries and pensions left unpaid by the previous administration, as he aims to end the era of salary backlogs in the state.
The governor made the pledge yesterday in Ilorin, when he met with civil servants, marking his administration’s first meeting with the service.
He said, “We will pay May salary almost immediately. We want to get to a place where there are no backlog of salary and pensions.”
On payment of the minimum wage, the governor did not specify the date the new wage policy will be implemented, but however revealed his intent to pay the minimum wage after due consultations with the civil servants and proper assessment of the financial situation of the state.
“We will discuss the minimum wage. The intention is to pay, but we need to sit down and resolve a few issues.
“There has been so much plundering of the state resources, but we will rise above all that.
“We’ll ride on your back to get things done while your welfare is taken care of.
“The problems are a lot, we cant resolve them in one, two, three, four months, but we need to start resolving them.
“You have to remember that some people are on half salary and they have not been paid. Some people have been promoted a few years ago and are still on the old salary scale”, the governor said.
The meeting was attended by the Head of the Civil Service, Mrs Susan Oluwole, permanent secretaries, directors, party stalwarts and other senior civil servants in the state.