#Yuletide : Umahi Announces 13th Month Salary For Ebonyi Workers

GOVERNOR David Umahi of Ebonyi State has said he would pay one month salary bonus as part of his Christmas package to workers....


Umahi, who was on a visit to the Ebonyi State University permanent site in Ezzamgbo, said in spite of the recession in the country and the fact that the state is one of the lowest recipients of federal allocations, his administration was determined to improve the lot of its workers.

Explaining that junior workers would receive 100 per cent bonus and senior workers 50 per cent, he challenged the university authorities to emulate his administration by paying salaries on or before the 20th of every month.

To the university workers and students, he said his administration would also put smiles on their faces during the Christmas period.

To this end, he announced the donation of a bag of rice each to all staff of the university and N5 million to be shared by them.

Umahi also gave 3,000 bags of rice and N10 million to the students as their Christmas gifts and donated two buses to the Students Union Government for easy transportation of students to their various campuses.

The governor further stated that the state House of Assembly had already given approval for sums to be spent on the largesse, stressing that his government was not owing workers salaries.

Recall that Umahi had announced 5 per cent salary increment to all the workers on October 1 this year.

Umahi further disclosed his administration’s plan to begin immediate payment of gratuity arrears owed by both local and state governments since 1993, amounting to N8 billion.

The governor, who expressed dismay that civil servants found it difficult to pay their retired colleagues their pensions, but would want to be paid when they retired, said the payment of gratuities would begin this month with the families of retirees who are now late.