Zamfara State Government has commenced the payment of the backlog of N13.4bn in gratuities to retirees in the state.
The state government revealed this in a statement, signed by the spokesperson of the Governor, Sulaiman Idris, on Saturday.
In the statement, the state government mentioned that retired civil servants in the state have not been paid their gratuities including death gratuities, retirement gratuities, and contract gratuities, since 2011.
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It said the situation prompted the establishment of a committee to authenticate retired civil servants’ data to pay off the accumulated gratuity debts.
The statement read partly: “The state government has taken a significant step towards addressing the outstanding debt of gratuity owed to retirees, which comprises death gratuities, retirement gratuities, and contract gratuities.
“Governor Dauda Lawal set up a committee to validate and authenticate retiree data to settle the debt of gratuities that has accumulated since 2011.
“After validating the data of retired civil servants, the government discovered that the total amount owed from state and local governments is 13.4 billion Naira.
“The committee has already gone far with the authentication of data submitted by local government and state pension commission and physical verification of beneficiaries.
“Retired state and local government employees who were verified have begun receiving their gratuity payments since Thursday.
“The government would ensure that all retirees are authenticated and paid their gratuities without any difficulties.
“The Zamfara State Government is fulfilling its promise to serve the people of Zamfara by rescuing and rebuilding the state for the better.”