Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State has approved a new minimum wage of ₦104,000 for civil servants in the state.
Naijaonpoint reports that the governor announced the increase during a meeting with labour union leaders on Tuesday night at the Government House, Owerri.
According to the governor, the wage adjustment raises the minimum salary for workers from ₦76,000 to ₦104,000.
Other categories of workers also received upward reviews:
- Doctors’ minimum pay rose from ₦215,000 to ₦503,000.
- Teachers in tertiary institutions had their salaries increased from ₦119,000 to ₦222,000.
Uzodimma said the decision was informed by the need to ease the economic hardship confronting workers.
“When workers are paid well, productivity rises, families are happier, and the local economy grows. This is our way of investing in Imo people,” he said.
The governor highlighted the challenges faced since his administration assumed office in 2020, ranging from insecurity, the COVID-19 pandemic, subsidy removal, and disputes over wages.
“We tried as a government to always put it behind our mind that there is no way any government will do well if it doesn’t have a friendly and cordial relationship with the organised labour,” Uzodimma stated.
He added that the state’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) had increased from ₦400 million to over ₦3 billion per month, while allocations from the Federation Account grew from ₦5-₦7 billion in 2020 to about ₦14 billion.
Uzodimma also disclosed that the state debt profile had reduced from ₦280 billion in 2020 to less than ₦100 billion.
The governor acknowledged the hardship caused by fuel subsidy removal but insisted the policy had long-term benefits.
“It is a thing of joy that we have started seeing the dividends of that bold decision of President Bola Tinubu to remove fuel subsidy. What government is confronted with now is how to ensure that the dividends of that policy trickle down to the common man on the street,” he said.
Uzodinma assured that transparency in resource allocation was key to sustaining reforms.
The Governor further revealed that the state government would commence the payment of the last batch of gratuities owed to pensioners, amounting to ₦16 billion, on August 27.
He added that his administration had introduced a health insurance scheme, equipped health facilities, and keyed into the Federal Government’s initiative of establishing 1,000 businesses in every active INEC ward.
The governor urged labour unions to foster unity with government and charged workers to avoid unethical practices and redundancy.
The state Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Uchechigemezu Nwigwe, described the wage increase as a major win for Imo workers.
“Today, no worker in Imo will say you (Uzodimma) have not been fair to us. You rescued us from economic challenges and placed Imo among the highest-paying states in Nigeria,” he said.
He prayed for the governor’s protection, assuring that workers would reciprocate through diligent service delivery.
Similarly, the Chairman of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Uchenna Ibe, lauded the governor’s “strong political will” in increasing wages and implementing reforms.
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