Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has cleared a N12 billion gratuity backlog for retired staff of the state’s eight local government councils.
The announcement was marked by a symbolic presentation of cheques to over 1,000 retirees at an event in Yenagoa on Thursday.
The significant payout has earned Governor Diri accolades from workers’ unions, with the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees bestowing upon him the award of the Best Governor on Local Government Reforms in Nigeria.
NULGE National President, Comrade Aliyu Kankara, presented the award during a conference titled “Promoting Local Government Workers’ Welfare: The Bayelsa Model.”
Kankara cited the governor’s transformation of the local government system through fiscal policy reforms, which have repositioned the third tier of government for better service delivery and staff welfare. He highlighted the implementation of an N80,000 minimum wage for council workers, additional salary increases of 25 and 30 per cent, and the state government’s support for councils in paying primary school teachers’ salaries.
Most notably, Kankara stated that Diri’s timely payment of pensions and gratuities is unprecedented, making Bayelsa the first state in Nigeria to pay retirement entitlements immediately after service.
“From available information, Governor Diri’s administration has paid over N20 billion as arrears of gratuity to retired workers in Bayelsa State since he was sworn in in 2020,” Kankara said.
The National President of the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria, Dr Kabir Sani, also commended Diri for improving the lives of local government workers in the state.
In his response, Governor Diri stated that the regular payment of salaries and gratuities was a fundamental duty for which he was elected and should not be celebrated.
He also revealed that he was initially accused of attempting to score cheap political points for doing the right thing in offsetting the gratuity backlog, which dated back to 2007.
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