Anambra State government said there is no going back on the implementation of the pro-rata payment policy measure against Monday sit-at-home culture among civil servants.
The Commissioner for Finance, Mr Moses Okafor, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, yesterday in Awka, while speaking on the deductions from workers salaries for the month of February.
NAN reports that civil servants observed and complained of varying deductions from their February salary without proper explanations.
But Okafor told NAN that the amounts deducted were for Mondays in which workers did not report for duties because they were observing sit-at-home.
He said his ministry was deliberate and systematic as it painstakingly went through the attendance lists taken and submitted by heads of ministries, departments and agencies to work out the amounts deductible.
He said Soludo is determined to ensure optimal productivity among workers and would not condone civil servants drawing full salaries when they worked four out of five days in a week.
“The governor has directed that sit-at-home is over in Anambra and it is inclusive of everybody, traders and civil servants alike, to ensure that the state is open for business and government activities on Mondays.
“The deduction is not arbitrary, heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, are made to write and send Monday attendance which is taken every Monday and I took time to sign all the original copies before they are sent to payroll.
“He has said that markets should open and civil servants should report to work on Monday, anybody who does not adhere to this will be met with pro-rata payment where the salary for Mondays they are absent will be deducted.”
On complaints by some workers that they received less than N10,000 as salary, Okafor added that it was for those who took loans and government mandate to service it from their pay.
He called on people who were not satisfied or clear with what they received to lodge a formal complaint for appropriate administrative redress.
Okafor said the pro-rata payment policy would continue for as long as people continue to stay away from work on Mondays, as the Soludo administration would no longer encourage docility.
He said the policy is also applicable to heads of MDAs who must be at work to ensure religious implementation and success of the directive.
“Anybody who has genuine complaint should feel free to forward same through their MDA heads for appropriate administrative action,” he said. NAN
