The governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, announced palliatives on Wednesday to alleviate the effects of the loss of gasoline subsidies on people of Ekiti, including students, employees, and retirees.
The loss of fuel subsidies will inevitably cause some short-term pain, according to Mr. Akintunde Oyebode, Chairman of the state Palliatives Committee and Commissioner for Finance, but he added that the palliatives would fill the void.
When reporting on the findings of the committee made up of government representatives and other stakeholders, including organized labor, Oyebode spoke in Ado Ekiti, the state capital. He said the palliatives included both the formal and informal sectors as well as elderly people.
The commissioner said that the governor had given the recommendations of the committee the go-ahead for immediate implementation.
He included in the list of initiatives “payment of one year’s leave bonus for state and local government workers” and “payment of one month’s pension arrears for state and local government pensioners.”
Another was the “implementation of consequential adjustment for workers on GL. 14 to GL. 17 for state and local governments” and “implementation of 90% CONHESS and 100% Hazard Allowance for health workers at the local governments,” according to him.
“adoption of financial benefits of 2020 and 2021 promotions for state and local government employees, adoption of salary parity for clinical personnel of the Hospitals Management Board.
“Immediate payment of one-month subvention arrears to tertiary institutions and provision of free shuttle buses for workers and students to ease transportation to/from work and school, respectively,” he continued.
Oyebode claimed that in addition to the previously listed initiatives, the governor has approved other interventions.
These, according to him, were “paying N5,000 as a conditional cash transfer to 10,000 households from August through December 2023 with emphasis on our senior people and inclusion of 10,000 people in the ‘Ulera Wa’ Health Insurance scheme.
According to the commissioner, the governor also gave his approval to “a food distribution program that will start this month, the distribution of inputs to farmers, as well as financial support for small businesses and our informal sector.”
The financial advantages of President Bola Tinubu’s challenging decisions, according to Oyebode, which he claimed were already being felt fiscally, made it possible for the interventions, he claimed.
He reaffirmed the dedication of the Oyebanji-led administration to the citizens of Ekiti State, stating, “Our government would provide improved services as a result of the higher revenues from the removal of the fuel subsidy.
Under Mr. Governor’s direction, “we will continue to advance our journey towards prosperity,” he stated. “Mr. Governor remains irrevocably committed to his vision of “Shared Prosperity” which is being driven by the government’s six-point agenda.”
Oyebanji was praised by organized labor for his love of workers and all state residents, including Chairmen of the Nigeria Labour Congress Kolapo Olatunde, Trade Union Congress Sola Adigun, and Joint Negotiation Council Oluwafemi Ajoloko.
The governor’s actions, according to the labor leaders, were unparalleled in Nigeria’s history of labor-government ties. They further emphasized that Oyebanji enthusiastically agreed to every suggestion made to him.
