Benue govt. will ensure no official diverts teachers’ salaries

Gov. Samuel Ortom of Benue has pledged that his administration will henceforth ensure that no state government official diverts money meant for the payment of teachers’ salaries.

Ortom made the promise while answering questions from State House correspondents after his meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja on Tuesday.

He said that the state government would ensure prompt payment of teachers’ salaries as part of deliberate efforts to uplift the quality of education in the state.

“One, I can assure you that, in our administration, starting from me, nobody will divert money meant for public service, including payment of salaries.

“So, no one can do that. I have said that and it has become a slogan in Benue State that when you chop money, money will chop you, and people are already sitting up and of course, if you escape Benue and come to Abuja, Buhari will arrest you.

“And everybody knows what this administration stands for, and that is the change we need in this country, so that alone is something.“

The governor revealed that the state government had already paid teachers’ salaries for May and June.

According to him, workers in the state, including teachers, have started receiving transaction alerts from their banks to indicate payment of their July salaries.

The governor said that efforts were being made to sustain the tempo of payment.

Ortom announced the state government’s plan to boost its internally generated revenue

from N300 million to N1.2 billion annually.

He reiterated his commitment to fighting corruption, saying that all revenue leakages had been blocked to ensure that the state’s internally generated revenue was judiciously used to the benefit of citizens.

He said that the government was looking for other sources of funding to finance infrastructure projects for rapid development of the state.