Borno begins payment of N1b gratuity to retirees

The Borno State Government yesterday commenced payment of N1 billion gratuities it owes retired workers, as part of the five-year N20 billion outstanding gratuities to retirees in the state.

Head of Service (HoS), Yerina Saleh, who announced the release and payment of the money in Maiduguri, at the Musa Usman Secretariat Complex, said Governor Kashim Shettima allocated the first tranche of N1 billion for immediate payment.

He said this was out of the five-year accumulated N20 billion gratuities of retired workers in ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) and the 27 local councils in the state.

Saleh noted that the state government suspended the payment of gratuities since June 2013 due to economic recession.

Speaking, Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the state, Titus Ali Abana, however, confirmed that the gratuities of pensioners have accumulated to over N20 billion.