Taraba: Governor Agbu moves to clear 7 years parliamentary staff allowances
Sylvanus Viashima, Jalingo
Taraba State Governor Dr Kefas Agbu has completed arrangement for the payment of outfit allowances of parliamentary staff in the state that has not been paid for almost Eight years.
The Chairman , House Committee on Information and member Representing Nguroje State Constituency Honorable Nelson Len disclosed this during an interaction with journalists in Jalingo on Friday.
Len disclosed that the Governor has given approval for the allowances of the parliamentary staff to be paid as soon as there is cash inflows to the State but the disbursement is yet to take place due to paucity of funds.
According to Len, “I am delighted to inform you that His Excellency the state governor Dr Kefas Agbu has approved the payment of the over Seven Years outstanding outfit allowances owed parliamentary staff in the State.
“The governor has made it clear that he is here to serve the people and has continuously demonstrated that clear human face. You will recall that the staff have not been paid these allowances for about Eight years before this present administration came on board. This cut across the Eighth, Ninth and now Tenth Assembly and he has decided to clear the allowances.
“Let me however make it very clear that no Kobo has been released to that effect yet. Approval has been secured but not disbursement yet. I read a story on a platform where someone alleged that the money was released to the House and the Speaker was reluctant to pay them. That is the height of ignorance and mischief.
“Those who are familiar with administrative processes will understand that approvals for payment does not translate to payments. It takes even more processes. The Speaker is passionate about the wellbeing of the staff and that is why he took up this matter with the Governor and has secured his approval.
“Once disbursement is done, it goes to the Staff and not the Speaker. There is no way the Speakers or any other member will hold down the entitlements of the staff. We work with them and they make our work possible. If we can not enjoy their trust and confidence, how do we then expect to secure the trust and confidence of our larger constituents?
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“That is why it is very important for me to clear the air on this issue that yes, the governor has given approval for the allowances to be paid but there is no cash backing yet. We are hoping that it will come soon because the Governor is passionate about the wellbeing of all workers in the state. But as we speak, no money has been released to that effect and the story making the rounds is completely misinforming . By the way, the approval is for the over Seven years owed and not just Seven months as alledged by the report” Len said.
Our Correspondent recall that the parliamentary staff had embarked on several industrial actions during the Eight years rule of Governors Darius Ishaku to compel the payment of their allowances to no avail. The former Speaker of the House Professor Joseph Albasu Kunini had also appealed to the former Governor at a public function to at least pay part of the allowances but all the efforts could not yield results until he left office.
