“Whatever noise we are hearing now is either by those who are yet to be cleared or those who have benefited from the system of inefficiency in the past.

“Anyone who has been certified cleared has been paid salary. To prove our point, we published the names and amounts paid to all workers, ministries, departments and agencies in the state’s website, www.kogistate.gov.ng.”

The governor of Kogi state, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, who made these clarifications through his media aide, Gbenga Olorunpomi in a chat with news men in Abuja today, Thursday, insisted that no civil servant is being owed salary and that the government had paid the salaries of all workers cleared by the recently concluded civil servants verification exercise.

“This government came to power at the time civil servants were on strike; the issue that led to the strike was that of the salaries owed to the workers for many months.

“At that time, all schools in the state were shut down; the government of Governor Yahaya Bello then decided that the only way to tackle this was to do total civil service verification. In the process, we found out that the state had plenty issues; about 83,000 personnel were withdrawing salaries from the state and this is a state that is barely 25 years old.

“So, there was need to do an audit to find out how we got to the situation where there were more senior than junior level civil servants; it was lopsided, the issues necessitated the civil service reform which is part of the five cardinal programmes of the government.”

Olorunpomi said that the exercise had been completed and the state now has a civil service that the government can manage, saying: “all persons that were cleared by whatever committee that was set up at the time were paid. We got our bailout fund to do this. We used the resources that came in from FAAC allocation and we have been paying salaries since then.”

It will be recalled that medical doctors iin the service of the state government have embarked on strike action on the excuse that they have not been paid their salaries for months, with man of them threatening to resign their appointments with the state government. [myad]

Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has said that President Muhammadu Buhari has been treatins him like his brother and son.

“I feel very much at home in Katsina. Moreso because this is the State of the President who has taken me as a brother; in fact, the President has taken me as a son in the way he treats me,” Osinbajo said.

Osinbajo was quoted by his media aide, Laolu Akande, as having made the statement at the palace of the Emir of Katsina,  Alhaji Abdulmumin Usman, when he paid him royal visit today, Thursday.

Akande quoted the acting President as saying that the amount of responsibilities which President Buhari has given him “shows that he seriously believes we can live together as brothers.

“I pray the Lord will preserve our President to continue to lead as the nation has voted him to do. He seriously believes in Nigeria unity”

President Buhari handed over to Osinbajo last Sunday shortly before travelled to the UK for further medical check-ups. [myad]

“We urge him to ignore mischief makers who seek to pitch him against the President or the Nigerian people whose mandates they both exercise.”

This is the advice which the Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF) offered Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, against the backdrop of the recent misinterpretation given to the letter which President Muhammadu Buhari transmitted to the Senate about his journey for follow-up medical consultation in London.

In a communiqué issued at the end of its two-day emergency meeting in Kano today, Thursday, the Northern Elders Forum also warned those seeking undeserved political advantage to desist from such moves, adding that  the North is conscious of its obligations and rights and will not hesitate to discharge and defend them without reservations.

The communiqué which was signed by NEF Deputy Leader, Chief Wantaregh Paul Unongo and its Spokesman, Professor Ango Abdullahi, said the group is aware that attempts are being made to exploit the absence of President Buhari to achieve dubious political goals.

The Forum advised Osinbajo to “exercise responsibilities as he did in the past with commitment, sensitivity and respect for the constitution.

“The task of governing the nation will continue uninterrupted until the return of President Buhari. We therefore appeal to all persons with responsibility to cooperate fully to sustain a united, focused and committed administration.

“While commending the sterling contributions of Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, in providing the necessary leadership to stabilize the polity, we appeal to the executive and legislative arms of government to work together to pass the 2017 budget without further delay.”

The Forum expressed full support for the ongoing campaign against corruption in the country, saying: “we also expect that the war against corruption will not suffer a setback and current investigations and activities will not be stalled due to the absence of President Buhari.” [myad]