By IHECHINYERE CHIGEMERI-UWOM

Gov. Alex Otti of Abia has said that his administration will begin the gradual payment of verified gratuity and pension arrears owed since 2001.

Otti disclosed this during his monthly media chat with newsmen at the Government House, Umuahia, on Friday night.

He said that the State Government had carefully reviewed all pending pension claims and worked closely with the pension union to verify outstanding gratuities before taking any payment decisions.

He said: “The committee that we set up between the national body of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners and members of my administration has just handed in the report.

“If you recall, after appeals had been made, we decided to look at it again and we have done that.

“It is disheartening that pensions have remained outstanding since 2001 and the total verified outstanding pensions is in excess of N60 billion.”

Otti described the arrears as “a very large number, dating back over 20 years”, adding that Abia Government must confront inherited liabilities.

“Government is continuous, and whatever you are handed over, you deal with it. If it is assets, if it is liability, you pick all of them.

“We are unafraid to work out a solution,” he said.

Otti assured pensioners in the state that his administration would not abandon them.

“One thing I would like to assure our pensioners is that their gratuity will be paid gradually,” he said.

He said that the payment of workers’ salaries was up to date, emphasising that staff welfare remained a top priority for the government.

Otti also addressed a payment glitch that affected the newly recruited teachers.

He said: “I have instructed everyone involved that they cannot have a weekend until every affected teacher is paid.

“By the end of Sunday, all the people who are affected will receive their salaries.”

The governor also said that the State Government reopened its recruitment portal to recruit 4,000 teachers with 27,980 applications received in two weeks.

“That shows the excitement and approval coming from prospective teachers.

“We will go through the process like we did the first time and ensure that the recruitment is transparently done.

“One thing I will like to assure our people is that the process cannot be manipulated under my watch.

“You can go home and sleep knowing fully well that if you qualify, you will be taken and if you don’t qualify, no matter who you know, you will not be taken,” Otti said.

He also said that the recruitment of medical personnel by the government was nearly completed, with some applicants coming from outside Nigeria.

He highlighted recent national ratings by SBM Intelligence, saying that Abia was ranked the most prepared state for medical emergencies.

He also pointed out that the state also topped the Kevlin Index for intra-city transport affordability.

“While a trip costs about N542 in Abia, the state that came last costs N1,399, and the difference is like day and night,” he said.

The governor said that the newly acquired electric buses would be deployed before year-end to further reduce transport costs.

He said that road construction had resumed across the state, following the end of the rains, with contractors directed to fast-track work.

He reported progress in land administration, saying that Abia had issued 30,562 Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-O) in two-and-a-half years.

“Two years ago, we introduced the C-of-O in 30 days policy.

“As of yesterday, we have issued about 30,562, while some states have not achieved this number in eight years.

“The goal is to unlock value that was trapped because of the difficulty in issuing C-of-Os.

“We automated the process, so once it gets to me, I simply sign and return it,” he said.

Otti said that revenue recovery efforts were being intensified and applied uniformly to all debtors.

He said: “We don’t look at faces; we look at numbers.

“Anyone who is owing will be visited by the Harmonised Task Force after due process, including a court order.

“We do not move in without demand notices and a court order.

“We are a government with a human face, but government cannot function without adequate revenue.”

The governor said that the State Government had sustained its efforts in renovating and fencing schools while upgrading curricula.

He announced that 24 courses at the Abia State College of Education (Technical) and Architecture had regained accreditation.

He also said that development projects were progressing at the Abia State University and Dr Ogbonnaya Onu Polytechnic, where students produce waste buckets used by Abia State Environmental Protection Agency.

He highlighted the improvements in power supply and infrastructure, saying, “this is the Abia we envisioned”.

He said that aside from the review of the allowances for the National Youth Service Corps members from N4000 to between N20,000 and N50,000, government also rehabilitated the roads, streetlights, water in NYSC camp in Bende, to make it habitable”.

He said that the state was supporting the Nigerian Correctional Service by building perimeter fencing and a more holding centre to decongest the cells.

He said that efforts to exercise his prerogative of mercy on minor offenders got stalled because none of the 1,900 inmates was convicted of minor offences.

“I have asked the Zonal Coordinator to review again and identify anyone eligible for pardon as we approach year-end,” Otti said. (NAN)

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