The Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) has honoured Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State as the Best Governor on Local Government Re- forms in Nigeria.

NULGE President, Comrade Aliyu Kankara, presented the award to the governor in Yenagoa, the state capital, during a conference on “Promoting Local Government Workers’ Welfare: The Bayelsa Model.” Comrade Kankara said that Governor Diri’s achievements included transforming the local government system in the state through the introduction of fiscal policy reforms that repositioned the third tier of government for better service delivery, staff welfare, regular promotions and financial benefits.

The NULGE President said that the implementation of N80,000 mini- mum wage for council workers and an additional 25 and 30 per cent salary increase as well as the government’s support to councils in the payment of primary schools teacher’s salary were some of the heart-warming testimonies of the union members.

He described as unprecedented the governor’s timely payment of pensions and gratuities to local government retirees, saying that Bayelsa was the first state in the country to pay retirement entitlements immediately after service.

He said: “The Governor of Bayelsa State has ex- celled where many other state governors have failed in human capital development by prioritising the welfare of workers in the state, particularly those at the grassroots level.

“From available information, Diri’s administration has paid over N20 bil- lion as arrears of gratuity to retired workers in Bayelsa State since he was sworn in in 2020.”

The National President of the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN), Dr. Kabir Sani, also appreciated the gover- nor for improving the lives of local government work- ers in the state, including those from his union. Diri, in his remarks, said regular payment of salaries to workers and gratuity to retirees were part of the reasons he was elected and should not be celebrated.

He revealed that he was initially accused of attempting to score cheap political points for doing the right thing in offsetting the back- log of gratuities, which dated back to 2007. Governor Diri said the challenges he met on assuming office necessitated the reforms as several of the councils had huge financial deficits and relied on the state government for bailouts.

He said his vision for government at all levels was to secure the livelihood of the people, enhance food availability and generate more revenue.

He restated his directive to council chairmen to embark on farming in areas of comparative advantage in order to boost food supply in the state.

He said: “The moment you retire at 60 or 65 years, you become a senior citizen and you are entitled to your gratuity. In other climes, it is taken for granted. Therefore we should not celebrate it. Initially, some persons queried it when I started immediately paying gratuities. They said previous administrations did not pay.”