By Ben Ngwakwe, Gombe
GOMBE — Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, on Thursday announced the release of N10.32 billion to settle outstanding gratuities owed 6,665 state and local government retirees.
Yahaya, who spoke at the commencement of the payment exercise in Gombe, said N6.24 billion would go to 2,354 state government retirees, while N4.08 billion would support the 11 local government councils in settling outstanding gratuities owed their retirees.
The latest intervention followed the approval of N10.32 billion by the Gombe State Executive Council for the payment of outstanding gratuities.
According to the governor, the state-level component covers retirees for 2024 and 2025, while payments by the local councils vary according to their respective outstanding liabilities.
Yahaya described the exercise as a milestone in his administration’s efforts to address inherited liabilities and restore dignity to retired workers who served the state.
He recalled that his administration inherited more than N21 billion in outstanding gratuities when it assumed office in 2019, covering different years of arrears owed by the state and local governments.
He said the financial position of the state and councils at the time made it difficult to clear the accumulated obligations, prompting the administration to adopt a phased approach.
“From the outset, we recognised that the welfare of retirees is not a privilege but a right, and that every worker who has served faithfully deserves to retire with dignity and financial security,” he said.
Yahaya said the administration had continued to commit resources to gratuity payments despite economic challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, recession, Russia-Ukraine war, fuel subsidy removal and naira reforms.
He said the government had, before the latest intervention, paid N33.283 billion in gratuities, adding that the latest payment would raise the cumulative amount spent on gratuities since 2019 to N44.134 billion.
The governor said the latest intervention would benefit 2,354 state retirees and 4,311 local government retirees.
Local government breakdown
Giving a breakdown of the local government component, Yahaya said payments would cover different periods based on the outstanding liabilities and financial capacity of each council.
He said the payment periods covered Akko, 2019; Balanga, 2018–2023; Billiri, 2019–2025; Dukku, 2018–2022; Funakaye, Kwami and Nafada, 2025; Gombe, 2017–2022; Kaltungo, 2017–2023; Shongom, 2019–2023; and Yamaltu/Deba, 2017–2018.
He said the schedule was designed to promote equity and sustainability while enabling the councils to progressively clear their obligations.
The governor also disclosed that N299 million had been provided to settle gratuities owed former employees of the Gombe Investment and Property Development Company following the dissolution of the company and establishment of the Gombe State Investment Promotion Agency.
He added that he had approved the settlement of outstanding gratuities owed former local government chairmen and councillors from the previous administration to date.
State gratuity obligations cleared to 2025
Yahaya said the latest payment had cleared the state’s outstanding gratuity obligations up to December 2025.
He, however, acknowledged that new gratuity liabilities had continued to accrue from January 2026, promising that gratuities for the current year would be paid early in 2027.
He said the administration was also working towards establishing a sustainable mechanism for meeting future gratuity obligations, including consideration of a contributory pension arrangement or other financing options.
“Our objective is simple: gratuity obligations must never again be allowed to accumulate and become an unbearable burden to the state and our retirees,” he said.
The governor commended retirees for their patience and resilience, saying their prolonged wait for outstanding entitlements had strengthened the administration’s resolve to prevent a recurrence.
Minimum wage, health workers’ pay
Yahaya said the gratuity payments formed part of a broader workers’ welfare programme pursued by his administration since 2019.
He said the state had implemented the new minimum wage for workers at both state and local government levels, while CONMESS and CONHESS had also been implemented for medical doctors, nurses and other allied health professionals.
According to him, salaries and pensions had been paid promptly throughout the administration despite periods of economic difficulty.
He added that the government had rehabilitated government offices and public assets, while constructing a new State Secretariat and other structures within the Three Arms Zone.
Yahaya said 13 new Local Council Development Area secretariats had also been constructed, while the existing 11 local government secretariats had been rehabilitated.
He added that the administration would honour its pledge to construct a new secretariat for the Gombe State chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress.
Civil service, digital reforms
The governor said his administration was also reforming the state civil service through institutional and digital initiatives.
He identified the establishment of the Bureau of Public Service Reforms, BPSR, as part of measures to improve workers’ capacity, productivity and service delivery.
He said the Gombe State Information Technology and Digital Economy Commission, GOSIDEC, had completed an audit of the state’s information and communication technology infrastructure, while training had commenced for workers in e-governance.
On employment, Yahaya said the decision to delay large-scale recruitment was partly influenced by the need to address inherited gratuity obligations and avoid creating additional liabilities for the state.
He said the government had nevertheless employed 1,000 teachers and more than 440 health workers, in addition to personnel recruited into various agencies established by the administration.
With the inherited gratuity backlog substantially addressed, the governor said Gombe was now better positioned to undertake recruitment strategically, based on actual manpower requirements of the public service and economy.
Yahaya assured workers and retirees that the administration would continue to maintain financial discipline and prioritise the timely payment of legitimate entitlements.
He appealed to retirees, civil servants and organised labour to reciprocate the government’s efforts by supporting its programmes and reforms.
“Together, we are building a Gombe State where service is rewarded, dignity is preserved, progress is enhanced and prosperity is shared among all of us,” Yahaya said.
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