Sanwo-olu: Pay Rise Coming For Lagos’ Workers

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Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has surprised public servants with his announcement that a pay rise is coming.

The move, the Governor said, is to cushion the effects of inflation, high prices of commodities and rising cost of living being experienced across the globe.

Sanwo-Olu personally broke the news to the civil servants, who gathered on Tuesday to receive when he paid a surprise visit to the Secretariat in Alausa – the seat of the Government. His cabinet members joined the reception, which was led by Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola.

The Governor announced also, a 25 per cent salary increment for employees in the core establishment agencies.

Sanwo-Olu directed the Head of Service, Ministry of Establishment, Training and Pensions and the State Treasury Office (STO) to work out the modalities for upward review and statutory approvals, after which the implementation of the new pay would kick off.

The announcement elicited spontaneous jubilation from workers, as the news went round the Government Secretariat. The enthusiastic staff said the new salaries would boost productivity and scale up service delivery to residents.

Sanwo-Olu said the workers deserved encouraging welfare and benefits, given their unprecedented support and commitment to the core mandates of the State Government. The Governor added that the gesture would further motivate the State’s workforce and enhance its services to the people.

He said: “I have looked around, I know there is pressure and high level of inflation in the country. There is high cost of living everywhere. Last month at the cabinet meeting, I instructed the Office of Head of Service and Ministry of Establishment, Training and Pensions to start work on how we will increase the salaries of the entire workforce.

“I just don’t want to talk about it because we are Lagos; we reflect this decision in the lives of our people. I know the pressure of inflation is on you; we will not wait for the Federal Government before we take this decision. This is Lagos. We are going to review the salaries and ensure we take care of our public servants.

“When we do the pay rise, not only will we expect more from you, our citizens must also see the benefits of this important decision in the service delivery. We are a Government that is proactive, we don’t want the staff unions to hold us to ransom. We are responding to the yearnings of our people; I know you have not asked for it, but I am happy to tell you that a pay increase is on the way.”