Tertiary institutions across Abia State were filled with excitement this weekend as staff members began receiving long-awaited salary arrears, totaling N17.6 billion.
This development sparked widespread joy, with a viral video showing jubilant employees of Abia Polytechnic, Aba, expressing their gratitude to Governor Alex Otti for keeping his promise.
The salary backlog is being cleared through monthly installments of N1.5 billion, with the first batch of payments already disbursed.
In a statement, Prince Okey Kanu, the State Commissioner for Information, confirmed the commencement of the payments, stating that the disbursement plan would continue over the next 12 months until the debt is fully paid.
The statement read: “In line with the promise of the Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Chioma Otti, to clear the arrears of salaries owed to workers in the state by previous administrations, the office of the Accountant General has started paying verified workers a total of N17,629,767,342.09.”
The structured payment plan, which follows a 12-month amortization schedule, is intended to ensure that other areas of governance are not neglected due to financial constraints.
The Otti-led administration has once again demonstrated its dedication to the welfare of Abia State civil servants.
In another statement, Mr. Ukoha Njoku Ukoha, Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, addressed the criticism from those who accumulated the debt while in power.
He noted that instead of praising the Governor for addressing the issue, these individuals have chosen to criticize him for political reasons.
“Ironically, those who looted and plundered the salaries of state workers now shamelessly criticize the Governor for cleaning up their mess in the name of opposition politics,” Ukoha said.
He added that Governor Otti takes greater satisfaction in the jubilation of Abia workers than in the negativity of those who mismanaged the state’s resources.
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