Governor Alex Otti reaffirmed his commitment to fulfilling his earlier pledge of settling all pendin
The Governor, represented by the Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Mike Akpara, conveyed that his administration inherited a substantial N50 billion salary arrears from his predecessor, Okezie Ikpeazu, in addition to other substantial debts.
Akpara, who was sworn in during the week, as he was abroad when the other Commissioners took office, provided assurance that Governor Alex Otti's administration remains committed to prioritizing workers' payments.
He restated Governor Otti's resolute determination to fulfill campaign promises, specifically addressing the clearing of salary arrears owed to civil and public servants from the previous administration in the state.
"We are assuring the people of Abia that the commitment we made to them, assuring that by December 31st, the issue of salary arrears will be resolved, is unwavering and will be upheld as a sacred promise. We will address it as expected of us," he stated.
He continued, "Pensioners will receive payments, gratuities will be honored, salaries will be timely, and all other dividends of democracy owed to the people of Abia will be delivered. While we ask for patience, we acknowledge that the issues we are confronting were embedded over 24 years, so resolving them within the next couple of months will require persistence."
"With time and divine support, coupled with our determination, I assure Abia's citizens that their well-being will be taken care of. Better days are on the horizon."
The commissioner noted that the governor initiated the ongoing process of verifying and harmonizing the civil service to accurately ascertain the genuine workforce in the state.
"We arrived with numerous manifestos, one of which revolves around ensuring the welfare of the Abia workforce."
"His Excellency has eradicated the categorization of core and non-core staff within the civil service.
"The distinction between core and non-core staff members has been eliminated. This signifies equality among all, ensuring that each worker receives their rightful remuneration.
"Consequently, we are currently undertaking harmonization and regularization processes to ensure that only genuine workers are compensated accordingly.
"We're addressing instances where some individuals are receiving salaries despite not fulfilling their work obligations."
"Some individuals have been exploiting the system by submitting false names to receive salaries.
"We are committed to putting an end to this practice, which is precisely why we are implementing a rigorous process.
"We are willing to endure this effort to eradicate any dishonest elements within the system.
"Once this is accomplished, the operations will become smoother for us," Akpara affirmed.
He also mentioned that the administration has introduced a salary payment application system to address the existing challenges in salary disbursement.
He linked the challenges related to the current salary payment issues to the decision of Ikpeazu's government to abstain from using the salary payment application.
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