KDSG to present 2016 Budget next week, apologizes for delayed October Salary By; ABDULL-AZEEZ AHMED KADIR, Kaduna

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KDSG to present 2016 Budget next week, apologizes for delayed October Salary
  By; ABDULL-AZEEZ AHMED KADIR, Kaduna
 Kaduna State Government is to present the 2016 proposed appropriation to the state House of Assembly next week just as it apologized for the delay in the payment of the October salary to the workers.
The Commissioner of Budget and Planning, Alhaji Muhammed Sani Dattijo said the details of the actual date and time is being discussed with the legislators and would be made public the moment it is agreed on.
His counterpart in the Finance Ministry, Alhaji Suleiman Audu Kwari while apologizing for the delay in the payment of the October salary, assured that the government would sustain the payment of salaries on the 25th of every month hence.
Kwari said the hitches are regrettable and moves are being made to ensure they do not re-occur. He asserted that currently there are 570 of the state workers in the third and final stage of verification exercise due to the hitches from UBA which led to the government directive to move the payments henceforth to Zenith Bank.
When New Nigerian asked Kwari what measures has the state Government put in place to ensure the payment on 25th of every month is sustained in the face of dwindling income, he said the government has an understanding with a commercial bank for a seven day window to borrow and supplement, in the case of shortfall in the state monthly income.
“Kaduna State is one of the luckiest states because we haven’t yet borrowed beyond what our salary package is on monthly basis. What is deducted from our coffers is usually far, far below what would enable us pay salaries.
“The Executive Council has also considered a buffer where, talking to our bankers, we would be able to have a seven day credit line that we hope would be able to accommodate this.
“Zenith Bank has left the window open for us, should our income not come on time, we can draw on that credit line just as a buffer to make sure we live up to expectations and to the committed date” he assured.
On the issue of leave grants, Kwari said “we are hopeful that we should be able to pay leave grants within the first week of December. Though leave grant is not always outstanding until the year ends. So, we have to leverage on the fact that we have some resources to handle those and we are thinking that we would be able to pay given the necessary support by the Executive Council”.

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