Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo
A call has been made to the federal government to urgently intervene in the escalating salary crisis affecting the states of the federation.
The call was made wednesday in Osogbo by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in a statement issued by the party’s Director of Publicity, Research and Strategy, Kunle Oyatomi.
According to the party, “we are approaching an emergency on this crisis, because not only is the crisis spreading like wild fire across states, it is assuming a dimension that would seriously affect the economy of the country.”
The APC, however, praised the federal government for its previous bailout intervention but added that intervention was not only inadequate, it only marginally addressed the crisis.
“To avoid an emergency that could create difficulties for the economy in the next decade, the federal government must address the problem now, even it means having recourse to our reserves,” the party said.
The APC decried a situation in which many states are owing their workers salaries between five and 10 months .
“What was cynically thought to be an Osun State problem is now suddenly a national emergency which the federal government can ill afford to ignore.
“We cannot play the ostrich in a situation as critical as this’.
“Those politicians who only few months ago were mocking Osun state and cynically offering their salaries to pay workers in the state have suddenly become quiet now that their own states are owing between six and 10 months’ salaries, especially in Bayelsa,” he stated.
The APC further stressed that the salary crisis was a critical factor in the economic stagnation we are experiencing currently.
“Except it is handled nationally by the federal government, it is unlikely that the crisis will go away soon
“We are therefore appealing to President Muhammadu Buhari and the federal government to help the affected states out of this crisis,” the party said.
The APC argued that: “Since it has been impossible for states to use internally generated revenue (IGR) to pay its workers, it is unlikely to do so in the next decade without major restructuring of the political and economic landscape of the country as it currently exists.
