Minimum wage: Ogun may re-adjust N305bn proposed budget for 2019

THE Ogun State Government said it might re-adjust the N305billion proposed budget in its 2019 budget to accommodate the new minimum wage.

This was stated by the State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, on Tuesday, at the 2019 Treasury Board Meeting, held at the Obas Complex, Governor’s Office, Abeokuta, that the proposed budget was reduced by N38million than the 2018 budget.

Amosun explained that his administration would pay the minimum wage as agreed by the State governors, however, said that not all workers would benefit from the wage according to a letter it received from the organised labour unions.

He submitted that the labour unions and state governments would strike a balance on the matter.

The governor said that his administration had offset the cooperative deductions of civil servants with N11.8b out of the N17.3b received from the last tranche of the Paris Club refund.

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He added that N6.8b was paid for deductions of state civil servants and local government workers, while the balance was used in offsetting the deductions of retired civil servants.

Amosun said the budget would also be used to finance and complete all ongoing projects across the State.

The state commissioner for Budget and Planning, Ms Aderenle Adesina, explained that education would take the lion share of the budget with the sum of N66.9billion which was reduced by N12bn as against N78. 9bn proposed for the 2018 budget.