Governor El-Rufai orders 50 percent salary slash for political appointees

Governor Nasir El-Rufai has ordered a 50 percent salary slash for his political appointees in Kaduna state.

The directive was conveyed in a statement released by the Governor’s
media aide, Muyiwa Adekeye. The 50 percent salary slash will run till
the quarantine ends.

Governor El-Rufai also directed all senior government appointees in
the state including Commissioners, Permanent Secretaries, Special
Advisers and Heads of Agencies to each donate N500,000 in April 2020 as
their contribution in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic in the
state.

Some of the Kaduna Governor’s political appointees will also be
making monthly donations to support the provision of relief to the low
income, poor and vulnerable residents of the state. Career public
servants earning a net pay of N67,000 and above after tax will also
donate 25% of their pay monthly whilst the quarantine conditions are in
place, adding that no public servant will have less N50,000 monthly to
manage in this emergency period.

The statement reads in part;

“We are obliged to demonstrate that as government workers, we care
enough for others to donate part of our earnings for their wellbeing. As
a state government, we are also seeking donations from high net worth
individuals, the private sector and development partners to support our
efforts to contain Covid-19 and its consequences.

“To fund the provision of these support packages, the Kaduna State
Government expects all those fortunate enough to still earn a regular
income to live up to their neighbourly responsibility towards those who
are unable to earn any money due to no fault of theirs. Therefore, the
less than 100, 000 persons who work for the Kaduna State Government as
political appointees and public servants must contribute financially
towards enabling the almost 10m persons living in the state to survive
and thrive in this emergency period.

“The Kaduna State Government wishes to inform potential donors that
we prefer donations to be in kind: personal protective equipment, PCR
machines, medical facilities and equipment, facemasks, food,
pharmaceuticals, and fertilizer, seeds and seedlings and other support
for farmers. The state government will publicly acknowledge all
donations in addition to the letters of appreciation that shall be sent
to all donors.