Osun Guber: I will pay outstanding salaries’ within 1 year – Oyetola

The flag bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the forthcoming Osun Governorship election has emphatically said all outstanding salaries of the State civil servants will be paid within his one year in office as the State Governor.

The party flag bearer who emerged winner of the direct primary election held last weekend at the State capital after beating other five aspirants said the state which is not owing junior staff salary but paying levels 8 to 10 75% and owing levels 11 to 17 said he will prefer the direct primary for future elections in the country.

Oyetola, who is the Chief of Staff to the incumbent Governor of the State Rauf Aregbesola was at the Party National Secretariat on Monday on a ‘Thank You’ visit to the party leaders;

spoke to newsmen after a closed door meeting said that most state has been challenged by lack of fund over the years adding that; “there is this misconception on the issue of salaries about Osun state.

“We paid salary from level seven, we do not owe anybody. We paid 75% for people in level 8 to 10; the only category of people we owe is actually from levels 12 to 17, likewise pension.

“Yes it is a challenge we all recognize but we believe, that will not persist for too long. My attitude and the method I want to adopt is not to entirely rely on the allocation that comes from the federal government but to look at the means to seriously develop the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR),

not necessarily by increasing tax but by ensuring efficiency in terms of collection and by bringing people who have been evading tax to come into the bracket. You can still get more by doing all of that without necessarily increasing tax.

“So we are committed to paying whatever that is outstanding and we are looking forward to be able to pay full salaries subsequently, and in any case why do we want to be in government if we cannot think outside the box;

we must be very creative, that is the essence of being in government anyway. I believe in another one year you would have seen that things would have changed for the better in Osun State.

The State Governorship election comes up on the 22nd September, 2018.