Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, says his administration has paid N32 billion out of the N48 billion inherited liabilities owed to retirees in the state.
The governor disclosed this on Thursday while speaking at the 66th Independence Day celebration held at the Sani Abacha Indoor Stadium in Kano.
Yusuf said the government had also maintained the regular payment of monthly pensions and increased the minimum pension in the state from N5,000 to N20,000.
He said, “We have so far paid N32bn out of the N48bn backlog of inherited gratuities and related liabilities owed to retirees in the state.”
According to him, the state government has also sustained timely salary payments and implemented the N71,000 minimum wage for civil servants.
Yusuf added that workers were being sponsored for professional development programmes, including courses at the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria, to strengthen their administrative and leadership skills.
Meanwhile, the governor has announced the recruitment of 2,037 health professionals to address manpower shortages in public health facilities across the state.
The newly employed personnel include 250 medical doctors, 40 pharmacists, 250 nurses, 250 midwives, 150 Community Health Officers, 50 Junior Community Health Extension Workers and 50 medical laboratory scientists, among other professionals.
Speaking during the presentation of appointment letters to the new workers on Wednesday, Yusuf said the recruitment was prompted by the shortage of healthcare personnel, which had been aggravated by the migration of professionals seeking better opportunities elsewhere.
He said, “The recruitment became necessary due to the shortage of healthcare workers in the state, which has been worsened by the migration of doctors, nurses and other professionals to other locations in search of better opportunities.”
The governor urged the new recruits to treat patients with compassion, discipline and professionalism, irrespective of their social, religious, ethnic or political backgrounds.
He also warned health workers against demanding payments from patients before providing consultation or emergency care in public hospitals.
Yusuf said, “No patient should be denied timely medical attention or subjected to unnecessary hardship because of inability to pay before receiving care.”
He charged the workers to uphold the dignity and rights of patients while carrying out their duties, assuring that his administration would continue to invest in both the welfare of workers and the state’s healthcare system.
