The Kebbi Government says it has expended N10.8 billion on payments of outstanding gratuities to 7,003 retirees across the 21 local government areas in the last three years.
The Commissioner of Finance, Alhaji Ibrahim Augie, disclosed this while briefing newsmen in Birnin Kebbi on Thursday.
Augie said: “The sum of N1 billion was paid on one of six ratio to all verified retirees through Kwaido Committee in 2015.
“In 2016 and 2017, the sum of N6 billion was released and paid to all verified retirees for state, LGAs and LGEAs. These payments cleared 40 per cent of all claims of the verified retirees.
“In early 2018, another sum of N2.5 billion was released and paid to the verified retirees as every retiree got a minimum of 27 per cent of his outstanding gratuity arrears paid.
“This brought the total percentage payments on all claims to about 67 per cent.”
Augie said the government had recently released N1.3 billion for payment of 1,042 retirees with balances from N11 million and below under the Kwaido committee of one of six payment across state and local government areas.
He said: “From May 2015 to 2018, a total of 7,003 retirees were cleared so far 100 per cent.”
According to him, the present administration inherited the sum of N12.9 billion as outstanding gratuity liabilities in 2015.
He said the payment of retirees who disengaged from February 2017 to date would commence as soon as the ongoing verification exercise was completed.
The commissioner said all the payments were transparently made through the automated payment platform direct to beneficiaries’ bank accounts in collaboration with pension union representatives.
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