July 26, (THEWILL) – The Governor of Cross River State, Senator Bassey Otu, has approved the sum of N10 billion to offset payment of outstanding gratuity to retired civil and public servants in the State.
The Governor has equally approved the constitution of a Committee of the Executives of State and Local Government Pension Unions, under the headship of the Secretary to the State Government.
The Committee is expected to meet with the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) on Monday, July 29, 2024, to work out modalities for the payment of gratuities to retired civil and public officers in Cross River State.
This was made known in a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Nsa Gill.
Pensioners in the state have been owed gratuities dating back to 2014, during the administration of Senator Liyel Imoke.
This trend continued during the eight-year tenure of his successor, Ben Ayade, and several appeals and protests by retirees had not been heeded.
The present administration in the state promised to offset the backlog of gratuities upon assumptions of office but said this has been delayed due to “necessary steps for audit and verification”.
The government also said the exercise has helped it uncover 2000 ghost pensioners who have subsequently been expunged from both the State and Local Government Pensions Payrolls.
Payment of the gratuities is scheduled to kick off in August 2024.
THEWILL Correspondent, Aniekan Bassey has over six years experience that spans across several fields in print journalism including development communication, sexual reproductive and health rights issues, crime, climate change, social justice, business and human interest stories.
