FG commits N100bn to workers’ pay rise
From: KABIRU YUSUF,Abuja

WORKERS at the federal level will have cause to smile at the end of this month, as the federal government concluded all necessary arrangements towards implementing the 15 per cent increment in their monthly salaries as the federal government has set a side the sum of N100 billion for the purpose for this year alone.
The chairman of the white paper drafting committee and minister of the Federal Capital Territory , Malam Nasir Ahmed El- Rufa’i revealed this yesterday shortly after the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by president Olusegun Obasanjo and held at Presidential Villa, Abuja .
According to the chairman, the decision to come up with the new salary scale for the federal civil servants by the government was borne out of the desire to put a stop to the wastages of government’s facilities and also to provide enough take home for public servants.
The minister further said the consolidated salary will put government wages bill increase to N100billion per annum, adding that the policy designed to ensure the minimum take home for Armed forces, political office holders, police, para-military, tertiary institutions and civil servants.
Under this arrangement, he said the Armed forces salary structure indicated that a private officer will smile home with N260,000 per annum, High Brigadier N2.687million per annum while police lowest recruit has N63,528 as his take home per annum.
As for the harmonized tertiary institutions which include universities and health institutions such as teaching hospitals, the minister added the lowest staff on grade level 1 will earn N152,544 while the highest will receive N2.875 million.
Malam Nasir El-Rufa’i further said the lowest in the academic line will have N694,000, high level N3.29 million, while the harmonized salary for civil servants is N133,000 for level one step one, N144,000 for level four, and N2.271 million for level 17 step nine respectively.
Government, he said, has increased the sitting allowances of tofficials of special category which includes staff of National Judiciary Commission, Central Bank of Nigeria , Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Federal Mortgage Bank which was last reviewed in 1999.
He however stated that before this review, members of the board of directors of this category were paid N100,000 per annum but with this review, they will enjoy N458,000 per annum while an ordinary member will receive N398,000 respectably.
Their committee, he said had also reviewed the foreign service allowance which also have not been reviewed for a long time by 25 per cent, based on the level and location of the staff adding that this was after consultation with the United Nations as per the allowances of foreign staff.
The minister who said that Nigeria currently has over 90 missions across the globe, further said the salary of the permanent secretaries is now to be determine by the National Salaries and Wages Commission as the government will only pay specific allowances for those on shift duty like doctors and nurses.
He said while government has also agreed to pay specific allowances to personnel Information Communication Technology (ICT) category, from this year the government will commence aggressive construction of barracks for the military personnel across the nation.
According to the minister, this has become necessary as the government resolved to provide accommodation to all military men as well as equip their accommodation with furniture contrary to police.
To achieve this, he added government had earmarked the sum of N80 billion for the project which will ran for the maximum four years. “ Each year beginning from this year, government will provide the sum of N20 billion for the project”.