The Governor of Niger State, Umar Bago, has given his approval for the payment of a N20,000 wage award to civil servants in the state.
The announcement was made during an executive council meeting held on Wednesday at the government house in Minna, the state capital.
Governor Bago affirmed that the state government would commence the distribution of the wage award on Wednesday, assuring civil servants that they would soon begin receiving alerts regarding the payment.
The decision follows Governor Bago’s commitment to the well-being of the state’s workforce and is seen as a move to alleviate the economic challenges faced by civil servants.
The call for states to implement wage awards was echoed by national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, during the flag-off of an agricultural mechanization project in Minna.
Tinubu urged state governments to initiate the payment of wage awards to workers, emphasizing the positive impact it would have on citizens amid economic hardships.
Tinubu stated, “Let all the states start paying the wage awards. Whatever they are taking now plus the wage award would relieve the public. Please, I am not giving an order. I am appealing to you states; start paying the wage awards. Let everyone start paying it. It is a relief to the people.”
In addition to the wage award, Governor Bago disclosed that the state would also commence the distribution of 120 trucks of grains and initiate feeding programs for citizens across wards during the Ramadan period.
