Ekiti State Governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji has assured pensioners in the state that his administration has concluded plans to make disbursement of N200million monthly gratuities to them henceforth, promising to also review pensions in line with current realities.
Governor Oyebanji, who gave this assurance while disbursing over N500million gratuity cheques to 152 pensioners in Ado- Ekiti on Monday, also promised to review the monthly pension following the discovery that some pensioners still receive abysmally low amount as monthly pension.
The Governor expressed his disapproval for the usual gathering of elderly people in a hall for the purpose of disbursing gratuity cheques to them, and directed the PTAD office to ensure they disburse gratuity on monthly basis henceforth.
The Governor, who also assured pensioners that government has started working out modalities to defray over N40 Billion owed, said he had already approve N100million each for both state and local government retirees which must be disbursed on monthly basis to deserving pensioners.
According to him, “Forty Billion is just a number, I don’t think that is something we should not be able to resolve, I am in constant discussion with the committee that is doing this, they are almost done, we are looking at the best deal that will be acceptable to you and government. Once, we get to that level, we should be able to make a very definite mark on that number.
“I have approved that local government and state pensioners should be paid N100million every month for gratuity. I have just increased that of local government from N50 million to N100million. So, every month, apart from pension, we will be paying N200million and I believe that will go a long way till we resolve the issue on ground.
“There is no need accumulating the money, it should be paid to the pensioners immediately they receive it. We don’t have to be coming here to be distributing cheques again, I don’t think it is necessary again. I am not doing this for political reason.”
Governor Oyebanji assured citizens of the state that his efforts at infrastructural development of the state would not in anyway affect his shared prosperity agenda for the people as he stressed the need for political leaders to be futuristic in attending to issues that concern the populace.
“On the concern raised by people on some quarters, that infrastructure development programme of his administration would negatively affect his welfare programmes, we are going to do the two together, because Ekiti State belongs to everybody and we must be futuristic. Ado was not like this when the state was created, we agreed to do the flyover because, we did traffic study of that place and we discovered that in the next five years, with the rate Ado is growing and if we wait till then, there will be chaos in town.
“It was a risk we took to do that and most of our infrastructural programmes are strategically thought out. As a leader, I have learnt to be futuristic, if we spend all our resources on welfare and palliatives, what happen to yet to be born children of Ekiti, so we must lay a very solid foundation for them. That is what we are doing with infrastructure and agriculture. We are investing heavily in agriculture so as to ensure that what happened this year is not allowed to happen next year.”, The Governor said
Speaking further, Governor Oyebanji to expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for supporting the state saying without him, Ekiti would not have been able to achieve any meaningful development.
“As you are praying for me, please pray for President Tinubu, as president, he inherited both the assets and liabilities, part of the liabilities he inherited is a challenged economy, all these hardship is not caused by the president, but God had prepared him for a moment like this. I keep wondering what would have happened to Nigeria if we had a president that is not Asiwaju, that is not as prepared, that is not as courageous. He is the first president in this country that doesn’t have a godfather, so, nobody can harass him. He stated.
In their separate goodwill messages, the Chairmen, Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Elder Joel Akinola; Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Kolapo Olatunde; Trade Union Congress, Comrade Sola Adigun and Joint Negotiating Council, Comrade Babafemi Ajoloko, commended Governor Oyebanji on his various efforts at changing that narratives by ensuring that workers and pensioners enjoy a new lease of life in the state.
Also at the event were Secretary to the State Government, Dr Habibat Adubiaro, Head of Service, Engr. Sunday Komolafe, members of the state executive council, body of Permanent Secretaries among others.