Metro

Adeosun, ministry staff in face-off over N1.2bn benefits

Published

8 years ago

June 23, 2016

The face-off between the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun and the ministry of finance workers persisted as the minister Thursday, said the ministry cannot afford to pay the N1.2 billion requested by its workers

She said that the Federal Government was already borrowing funds to be able to pay the N165 billion a month needed to cover civil service salaries.

The staff had locked up the ministry’s offices in protest over certain allowances and benefits they said the minister stopped when he took over the ministry.

Adeosun who said this in a statement in Abuja, after the meeting held with the protesting workers of the Ministry, said her ministry has no power to pay N1.2 billion, which was not in its budget.

Read also: It’s a disgrace 27 states can’t pay salaries

She revealed that different government departments now face a very real squeeze in finances as the country grapples with the financial crisis inherited from previous administrations, saying that the collective priority, must be on working together to get the whole economy back on its feet.

The most important thing for management and staff according to her was to get a common understanding of what is required of government to regain financial stability.

She reiterated her intention to work with staff of the Finance Ministry to see how, in unity, those plans could be executed as quickly as possible, thereby stimulating growth within a new diversified economy.

Saying that she understands the feelings of the staff who felt they should get additional bonuses, based on their past dealings with the previous administration, she noted that many people across the country were struggling to find work or losing their jobs, in addition to the fact that fellow civil servants in several states are not being paid their salaries.

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