The President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari has said that he understands workers in the nation deserve an increase in salary.
Buhari however added that an increase in workers’ salaries can’t be accommodated in government spending at the moment due to dwindling resources available.
The president made the submission on Friday based on a request by the Central Working Committee of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) who paid him a courtesy visit at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The Nigerian leader blamed issues such as crude oil theft, the Ukraine-Russia war, COVID-19, and the global economic downturn for the dwindling government resources which have in turn made it impossible to increase the salaries of workers for now.
The President however told the Central Working Committee of ASCSN that the request for restoration of the payment of gratuity to public service employees has been addressed in the 2004 Pension Reform Act.
According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, President Buhari said; “I wish to urge you to appreciate the revenue constraints being presently faced by government, which is caused mainly by the activities of unscrupulous citizens through the theft of our crude oil, a major contributor to our revenue base.
This is compounded by global economic downturn as a result of the ongoing Russian – Ukrainian war, which has led to price increases not just in the costs of goods and services globally, but also in the transportation of these goods and services across the globe.
“You are also aware of the enormous burden placed on our finances by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
