Nasarawa Government Denies Report On Owing  Workers' Salaries, Demands Apology

The Nasarawa State government has refuted a report by BudgIT on owing state workers salary for six months.

The Chief Press Secretary to the Governor Ibrahim Adara, on Monday gave the clarification while reacting to the report, stating, no worker on the payroll of the government of Nasarawa State is owed salary for a single month. 

According to Addra , the organisation got its information wrong as the State Government does not owe salary of workers.

He stated that the report by BudgIT was not only false but unjust, unfair and has come to the Nasarawa State Government as a rude shock.

“We challenge BudgIT to come to the state and speak with the workers themselves and the Leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC and the Trade Union Congress TUC, or any other labour unions.

“We challenge BudgIT to admit it has goofed and come out with a categorical statement and apology regarding the status of salary payment in Nasarawa State.

“Going by its past reputation we had hoped BudgIT would deny the report or come out to admit errors in its data collection and make amends. 

“Days after the report BudgIT has not done so. The Nasarawa State Government is therefore left with no option but to lay bare this fallacy by BudgIT," Addra said.

He further noted that such matters of workers salary are not issues that can be concealed or left to some unverified data as the workers can speak for themselves. 

“Nasarawa has paid salaries up to July of 2022 and in full. It is therefore curious, worrisome and in bad taste that such lies are allowed to remain in the public domain. 

“By this report, BudgIT misinformed Nigerians and its wider audience and has in doing so dented its image and reduced its credibility quotient.

“We are at a loss as to how BudgIT got its data and arrived at this unfortunate conclusion. 

“The timing of the BudgIT report smacks of mischief and by allowing the same such wide circulation in the media space bear the markings of the job of a hatchet man.

“BudgIT, redeem your image! Correct this Blunder and apologize,” the statement reads in part. 

The organisation had purportedly arrived at its information through a field survey, as cited in its 2022 Sub-national Salary Survey, placing Nasarawa State among states owing salary of workers.