Unpaid Salaries To Local Government Workers In Edo State

The local government councils no doubt are closest to the people at the grass root. Politically, it is the third tier of government, coming after the federal and state governments. There are 774 local government councils that are constitutionally recognized in Nigeria. These local government councils are headed by the Chairman. The local government as the third tier of government is charged with enormous responsibilities. For instance, it is the responsibility of the local government to construct primary school, build markets, maintain cemeteries, rehabilitate earth roads, and provide Primary Health Care Services, among others.
Majority of these local government councils are rural in nature, with little or no source of internally generated revenue. This makes the local government councils in Nigeria to depend largely on revenues from the federation account on monthly basis.
However, the allocation accruing to each local government councils from the federation account has in recent time become grossly inadequate to pay primary school teachers, council workers, execution of capital projects and recurrent expenditures. In many local government councils, after deducting teachers’ salary from their allocation from the federation account, they are left with little or nothing, while they are yet to meet other demands such as payment of council workers, political office holders among others.
Consequently, many local government councils resort to borrowing and obtaining overdraft from financial institution to augment the shortfall. The current dwindling oil price in the international market has further aggravated the financial crisis facing local government councils in Nigeria, to the extent that many of the local government councils owe workers and political office holders salaries up to eight months, while the least is two months in some council. This has created untold hardship on the affected workers and politicians, as they now find it difficult to make ends meet. Besides, many local government councils can no longer embark on any project due to lack of funds to mobilize contractors.
Here in Edo State, the opposition party has severally accused Edo State government of starving the local governments with funds, alleging that the Comrade Governor is in the habit of deducting from and diverting local governments fund to other areas. This unfounded allegation has perhaps infuriated the local government workers, to the extent that the leadership of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees NULGE decided to call out their members on a regular peaceful protest to compel the state government and the various local government authorities to pay them their back log of salaries.
In as much as the plight of the local government workers is pathetic and NULGE protest understandable, the Association of Local Government of Nigeria ALGON, Edo State Chapter has debunked the allegation by the opposition party. According to the Chairman of ALGON, Edo State Chapter, and Chairman of Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Council, Hon. (Mrs) Itohan Osahon-Ogbeide, the Comrade Governor has never tampered with their allocation from the federation account. She attributed the inability to pay salaries by the councils to dwindling resources from the federation account. On his part, the Secretary of ALGON, Edo State, Barr. Jimoh Ijegbai said, Edo State is not the only state affected, and appealed to NULGE members to be patient and show high sense of understanding. The Chairman of Ovia North-East local government Hon. (Mrs) Lucy Omoagbon advised the opposition party to desist from making inciting comments and unsubstantiated allegations about the state governor, pointing out that everyone need to join hands with the state government and council chairmen to move the state forward.
Be that as it may, there is need for local government authorities to look inwards for alternative and viable means of generating revenue to augment whatever is coming from the federation account. The reality now is that price of oil has fallen and no one can say for certain when it will appreciate. If it does not appreciate, does it mean that councils will not ever be able to pay their workers salaries and execute capital projects? That of course explains why the local government council should take a step further by diversifying their revenue base. Good enough most of the local governments are rural in nature with vast land that is fertile for agriculture. Therefore, they could embark on the cultivation of food and cash crops, fisheries, piggery, grass cutter breeding among others. These are viable alternative sources of revenue that the local government could venture into with little capital base.
It must be realized that in many countries without crude oil or other natural resources, their local governments are still able to meet up with its responsibilities to their workers and the people. Therefore, the falling oil price could be partly adduced for their inability to pay workers, but not totally.
The workers cannot be blamed also for their peaceful protest, because it is often said that a worker is deserving of his or her wages, more so that they have families, children and loved ones to cater for from their monthly salaries.
Consequently, the state government and the local governments in conjunction with NULGE should conic together to work out modalities for the gradual payment of the outstanding salaries owed council workers in Edo State.