As the effects of the Covid-19 continue to unravel in Nigeria, Adamawa State may have become the first fiscal casualty of the virus.
The Adamawa State Government issued a statement to its civil servants saying it is unable to pay March salaries due to the economic crunch imposed by the global Covid-19 pandemic.
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The State Government issued a statement to this effect signed by the Director of Communication and Media in the Governor’s Office, Mr. Solomon Kumangar.
The statement said the economic crunch imposed by the pandemic has made it impossible for the state government to pay the consequential adjustment of the new national minimum wage it agreed to pay in an agreement signed with trade unions in the State.
The government however assured it’s workers that it was committed to paying the agreed upon increment on the minimum wage as soon as economic conditions become favourable.
Excerpts from the statement read:
“It should be noted that the government decided on this and other cost-saving measures to enable it to undertake basic services.
“Finally, the government assures that the welfare of the workforce remains paramount and the centrepiece of Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri’s cardinal agenda.”
Nigeria now has 46 cases of Covid-19 infections in the country.
The infected include the chief of staff to the President, Abba Kyari as well as the Governor of Bauchi State, Bala Mohammed.