In a disappointing turn of events, civil servants in Osun State woke up to receive their March salaries in the early hours of Wednesday but with great disappointment as the government failed to fulfill its promise.
The salary was delayed for fee days, a development that the government attributed said was due to the readiness of Governor Ademola to effect their promotions in their pays.
According to the spokesperson to the Governor, Mallam Olawale Rasheed in a statement last Friday, “The Government of Osun State has attributed delay in the payment of March salary to ongoing computation of promotion arrears of civil servants promoted without pay in the last four years. The compilation of what is due to each promoted officer is followed with due diligence to ensure that there is no error in the eventual payment”.
“Governor Ademola Adeleke has directed that compilation, analysis and computation of the promotion arrears should be completed and paid to the affected civil servants. That payment His Excellency insisted must be made alongside the March salary”.
However, the government’s failure to deliver on its promise left workers feeling angry and betrayed.
Some of the Civil servants who spoke with InsightMedia confirmed receipt of usual salary, stating that they still hope the governor will keep to his promise and effect the promotions.
In a statement on caretaker committee of Osun State Nigerian Labour Congress led by her chairperson simply identified as Comrade Modupeola earlier on Wednesday upon receipt of complains from their members met with the Head of Service, Ayanleye Aina to register their displeasure over the development.
According to a statement sent to NLC members and signed its caretaker chairman, the HOS attributed the failure to inability of some agencies to forward their salary requests on time.
“The failure was as a result of late submission of salary requests and its arrears by some agencies and parastatals of government to the appropriate quarters.”
“Some agencies salary reports were sent back for about 3 times before the salary officer could submit appropriate proposal, Ayanleye said.
He added that, “as a result of this, government initially thought that the proper reconciliation could be adequately perfected on time having in mind that Easter holiday comes up this Friday. But when they now discovered that the required reconciliation and perfection cannot be completed even this week, hence, the payment of old salary is inevitable for workers to have something to fall upon during the festive season.”
Aina appealed to the Osun state workers to bear with the government while making sure that every necessary thing would have been properly perfected and promotion and it’s arrears paid in April salary.
“We are now appealing to our salary officers across the state and their supervisors to please make sure that they fully cooperate with government in the submission of our monthly salary returns as and when due. They should always consult widely and on time too on issues not so clear to them while effecting workers promotions and the arrears therefrom.”
Several workers who do not want their names in prints told InsightMedia that the look forward to the day the government fulfills its promise.
