FG not responsible for failure of states to pay salaries

The Federal Ministry of Finance said the Federal Government
was not responsible for the failure of state governments to
pay workers’ salaries.
This is contained in a statement signed by Mr Paul
Nwabuikwu, spokesman to the Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala, in Abuja on Wednesday.
“Regarding difficulties in salary payment, certain governors
are trying to blame the federal government for their
predicaments.
“This is wrong. They had been told through the Federation
Accounts Allocation Committee to prioritize salaries, they
chose not to do so, hence the backlog that some states are
experiencing”, it said.
The statement also added that the 50% drop in revenues
simply meant that salaries should be prioritized and that the
federal government should not be blamed for mistakes that
could have been avoided but made at state level.
It added that it was wrong to allege that federal workers were
being owed salaries.
“This is incorrect. Staff salaries at the federal level are up to
date; workers have received their April salaries”, it added.