Kogi state not owing staff salaries — Gov Bello

Governor of Kogi state, Yahaya Bello, has dismissed speculations that he owes workers of the state salaries insisting that he is up to date in the payment of workers’ salaries.

Governor Bello, who spoke to newsmen when he visited the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the national secretariat in Abuja on Friday, stated that he has even paid the four months’ salary arrears owed to workers by the previous administration.

Reacting to state of the party in Kogi and his mission to the headquarters, Governor Bello who stormed the party secretariat with thousands of supporters said: “APC Kogi state is intact, strong and solidly behind me. I am here in the headquarters to discuss family matters and it went on very smoothly. On the issues discussed, I can tell you that I came to discuss the progress of our party and the administration and progress in the state”.

Dismissing the insinuation that there is crisis in the state and the recurring arrears of unpaid salaries to workers, he said: “All of us in the state met before the reconciliation committee to discuss family matters and it went very well. Kogi state has never been peaceful as it is today under my leadership. The State has never been that secured as it is today under my leadership and we are bound for one indivisible Kogi state”.

“On the salary payment in the state, I will simply refer you to Kogi state web site so you can get the fact from there,www.kogistate.gov.ng. You are going to see from there those four months arrears owed by the previous administration have been cleared.

“Month by month, Kogi state has paid its workers’ salaries. Workers’ salaries have been cleared. Those that are not cleared surely cannot be paid. If you go to our website you will see month by month, Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) by MDAs and those that have not been cleared have reasons they have not yet been cleared and that has been there. So, go and get your fact from there,” he said.

He equally reacted to the state of the nation under President Muhammadu Buhari saying: “Excellently well, our great President is doing very well considering where we are coming from in the hands of the PDP. Today, Nigeria is saved, our economy is recovering, Nigeria is peaceful, we are consuming what we produce and there is less violence across Nigeria. So, the party under the leadership of President Buhari is doing very well”, he added.
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