Gombe State Approves N1.097 billion for Payment of Outstanding Gratuity to Retirees

Governor Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State has approved the sum of N1.097 billion for the payment of outstanding gratuity for retirees under the state civil service.

This was disclosed in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Ismaila Uba Misilli, who said the payment is for outstanding liabilities of gratuity for pensioners that retired since 2014, totalling N1,097,968,035 billion.

The Senior Special Assistant said the payment is a proof of Governor Yahaya’s determination to ensure that workers, who have served the state and retired, enjoy dignified and comfortable life after retirement.

The Governor gave the directive on Monday after receiving the interim report from the committee he constituted to ascertain the state of the outstanding gratuities for the state retirees as at 29th May 2019, which was chaired by the state Auditor-General, Muhammad Gombe.

The amount of 1,097,968,035 is to cover payment to 504 eligible state retirees, with 50% approved for immediate payment to the beneficiaries. The payment of the gratuity for local government retirees will be approved after verification by the committee.

The Governor is determined to clear all backlog of gratuity and pension arrears owed retirees by the previous administration for about eight years. The governor assured civil servants in the state that his administration will encourage reward for hardwork and called on them to rededicate themselves for effective service delivery.

The past administration left a backlog of pension and gratuities for the state and local government retirees to the tune of over N14 billion despite receiving N38.5 billion as budget support and bailout from the Federal Government.