The Plateau State government said it had cleared its three months’ backlog of salary arrears for March, April and May following its receipt of the second tranche of salary bailout amounting to N5.2 billion from the federal government.
Daily Trust reports that the state government had in the last quarter of last year received the first batch of bailout funds in the sum of N5.3 billion.
State Commissioner of Finance Tamwakat Weli said in a press conference in Jos that the bailout was distributed between the State and local governments with N1.2 billion for the LGs and N4 billion to the state government.
Weli said the second batch of bailout had also covered outstanding arrears of January and February salaries, adding that Governor Simon Lalong had approved that the difference in the shortfall of May salaries and the November and December pension arrears be sourced and paid.
She said the state had qualified to access the Federally Guaranteed Conditional Budget Support Loan of N14.1 billion which will be disbursed in three tranches, adding, “The money will be disbursed in to the State in three tranches of N1.3 billion for three consecutive months. Thereafter, the balance will be disbursed over a period of nine months in equal amount of N1.1 billion at the interest rate of 9% for a tenure of one year moratorium before payment begins.”
