Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has revealed the reason for the delay in the payment of salaries of local government workers for the month of May.
The Governor said security reports he got indicated that outgoing local council chairmen may leave office with the local government allocation for the month of May.
The tenure of the outgone chairmen ended on Wednesday May 16, after they completed their three years in office.
The new chairmen who won the April 17 local government council election were sworn in on Thursday by the Governor at the state Government House, Port Harcourt.
Speaking during the swearing in ceremony, governor Wike disclosed that he ordered the suspension of the payment of May salaries to prevent some outgoing chairmen from leaving with the People’s money.
The Governor said “I stopped the last chairmen of council from paying the last salary because of security reports I got and complaints from councillors and supervisors that their money will not be paid knowing how we politicians who do not have conscience and their political leaders who would want them to cart away the last allocation that came.
“So, I decided to suspend the payment of salaries to local government workers.”
The governor, however, directed the newly sworn in chairmen to ensure that former council chairmen and their appointees as well as councillors recieve their salaries first before they carry on with their official duties.
Governor Wike also charged the new council chairmen to take environmental sanitation seriously, particularly in Eleme, Oyigbo, Obio Akpor and Port Harcourt city local government areas.
