From Maiharaji Altine
Governor Ahmed Aliyu of Sokoto state has approved the commencement of the payment of the N70,000 new national minimum wage to the state workers.
In a statement, the Press Secretary to the Governor, Abubakar Bawa said, the payment of the new wage would commence from tomorrow, Monday .
The statement added that, the payment of the new minimum wage would cover the state civil servants, local governments and LGEA staff across the state.
The statement also explained that, payment of gratuity to the retired civil servants was going to smoothly.
The statement reads in parts as follows:
“The payment of the new national minimum wage, which is in compliance with the new national minimum wage as approved by the federal government is also in fulfillment of the promise made by the Governor to that effect”.
“Gov. Aliyu, therefore, urged the civil servants in the state to reciprocate the invaluable gesture by being alive to their responsibilities”.
“With the commencement of the payment of this new national minimum wage,we expect a renewed commitment, hard work,punctuality and above all, seriousness from our civil servants, “he added .
“The Governor also vowed to sustain the prompt payment of salaries from the 19th to the 22nd of every month,saying that his administration will continue to remain workers’-friendly”.
It could be recalled that prior to the coming of the present administration in the state, workers were not sure of when to get their salaries, as salaries were paid after 50 days as against the usual 25-30 days.
With the coming of the Ahmed Aliyu-led administration, workers in the state now receive their salaries between the 19th and 22nd of every month, while the backlog of unpaid gratuity of retirees is being defrayed by the present administration.
The state government has set aside N500 million monthly to pay the backlog of unpaid gratuity, while an additional N300 million has also been set aside monthly to pay those that retired from 2023 to date.
The idea , according to government, is to ensure that by the time the present administration completes its tenure, no civil servant would be owed any gratuity by the state government.
