The Kwara State government said it is yet to receive money to offset salary arrears of local government staff and teachers under the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) from the federal government. It maintained that the N4.32bn loan secured from the Central Bank of Nigeria as bailout is meant to offset the May and August salaries of core civil servants in the state.

Permanent Secretary in the state Ministry of Finance, Benjamin Fatigun, made the clarification in Ilorin while responding to questions from lawmakers when he appeared before the House of Assembly Committee on Finance and Appropriation.

The committee had invited him to give details of the bailout.

Mr. Fatigun said though the state House of Assembly gave approval to the government to access the funds to clear salary arrears of council workers, the CBN was yet to release it.

He added that the state governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed, had to secure a loan of N5 billion last month from a commercial bank to pay council staff and primary school teachers, pending when the bailout fund would be released.

The permanent secretary attributed the delay in the payment of September salary to some workers in the state to non release of the bailout fund. He said the state government has set up a committee headed by Secretary to the State Government to proffer solution to the problem.

Speaking on non-payment of tertiary institutions staff and pensioners, the state Accountant General, Alhaji Suleiman Ishola, said his office included them in the bailout but that the CBN removed them.

He said there was no way the state government could deviate from the guidelines of the CBN.