The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has appealed to the Federal Government to assist states, owing their workers to settle the salary arrears.
The Director of Publicity, Research and Strategy of the APC in the state, Mr. Kunle Oyatomi, who sad this in a statement in Osogbo on Wednesday, believed the Federal Government should help the states even if it had to arrange for fund from its external reserves.
The party said states appreciated the bailout given to them last year by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, but stressed that they needed another bailout from the Federal Government to save them from the salary crisis.
The statement read, “We are approaching an emergency on this crisis, because not only is the crisis spreading like wild fire across states, it is assuming a dimension that would seriously affect the economy of the country.
“To avoid an emergency that could create difficulties for the economy in the next decade, the Federal Government must address the problem now, even it means having recourse to our reserves.
“What was cynically thought to be an Osun problem is now suddenly a national emergency, which the Federal Government can ill afford to ignore.
‘We cannot play the ostrich in a situation as critical as this.
“Those politicians, who only few months ago, were mocking the state of Osun and cynically offering their salaries to pay workers in Osun, have suddenly become quiet now that their own states owe between six and 10 months’ salaries, especially in Bayelsa.”
The APC further stressed that the salary crisis was a critical factor in the economic stagnation which Nigeria was experiencing currently.
The ruling party said the majority of the states needed bailout from the Federal Government because it had been impossible for them to use their internally generated revenues to pay their workers.
According to the APC, states are unlikely to be able to pay their workers in the next decade without major restructuring of the political and economic landscapes of the country.
It will be recalled that Osun State received N34.988bn bailout from the current administration of Buhari after the President assumed office in 2015.
Despite this, the state has not paid its workers regularly.
Workers have yet to be paid February 2016 salaries in Osun State and those on Level 08 and above have been receiving half salaries since July, 2015.
The Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress in Osun State, Mr. Jacob Adekomi, also called on the Federal Government to give further financial assistance to states to enable them to pay their workers.
Adekomi said this while speaking with our correspondent on the telephone on Wednesday.
He said, “It is a common knowledge that most states owe their workers. I support the call on the FG to assist states to pay workers. Two thirds of the states are in comatose; we need assistance because our people are hungry.” Punch
