Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) said yesterday that 23 states of the Federation currently owe local government workers’ arrears of salary ranging from one to 16 months.

NULGE National President, Ibrahim Khaleel, stated this in a statement, in Abuja, yesterday.

Khaleed was, however, full of praises for Lagos, Ogun, Kano, Katsina, Jigawa, Sokoto, Kebbi, Bauchi, Borno, Yobe, Gombe, Cross River, Niger and Anambra that are up to date in payment of local government workers.

According to Kaheel, Bayelsa State is leading in indebtedness to local council workers with between 10 to 16 months, followed by Kogi, between seven to 15 months; and Delta State with eight to 14 months.

“Kaduna, 12 months; Oyo three to 11 months; Edo 10 months; Abia five to nine months; Kwara two to nine months; Benue nine months and Nasarawa seven months.

“Ondo, Ekiti, Imo with six months; Zanfara has not been implementing the minimum wage, Adamawa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Plateau owe four months, while Taraba and FCT owe three months.

“While Osun State has been paying half salaries for 24 months and few, staff are owed few months in Enugu,” he said.

The union noted that Ekiti has refused to remit union dues for the past nine months and Ogun has not also remitted its deduction for seven months.

The national president also said that 700 staff were owed between one to three months in Cross River State.

He called on the governors of the states to offset the salaries and other allowances of local government workers with the second tranche of the Paris Loan Refund released to them.

He said that failure to do so, the union would be forced to mobilised and shut down all local government councils in the country.

Khaleel urged state governors not to divert or tamper with the second tranche of the Paris Club Loan refund but deploy it to offset the entitlement of the workers.

He, however, said the union is aware that some state governors were already claiming that the amount released was not in conformity with the published figure.

“We want to state in strong terms that no governor should either divert or tamper with the funds.

“This should be an avenue where the backlog of arrears of salaries owed local government workers and some other welfare packages should be settled; such as leave bonus, arrears of promotion benefits, arrears of annual increment and non implementation of minimum wage most especially in Zamfara State are resolved and paid.

“We, therefore, use this medium to appeal passionately that governors should use this second tranche of the Paris Club loan refund to clear arrears of salaries.

This will help ameliorate the untold hardship our staff are currently passing through due.” (Daily Sun)