Niger Delta
Retirees Drags Cross River State Government To Industrial Court Over Non-Payment Of Gratuity
Top ranking retired civil servants in Cross River State, including permanent secretaries, have allegedly concluded arrangements to drag
the State government and the Accountant General to National Industrial Court in Calabar for refusing to pay them their gratuities since 2014.
Our correspondent gathered that some retirees have not been paid since 2014, the development which has prompted many of them to be embarking on peaceful protests occasionally to Governor’s office, but protests yielded no result.
It would be recalled that late last year, a twenty-six-year-old man, Mr. Joseph Odey, also staged a one-man protest with a placard, ‘Your Excellency please pay gratuity, my family is distressed,’ He had told newsmen that his late father put in 32 years of faithful service to the state and died as a school principal a few months before he was due for retirement.
On the planned litigation, a retired permanent secretary, who spoke to our reporter on condition of anonymity, said the court case was the last option since all entreaties and protests have failed, submitting that they were waiting for their legal adviser and solicitor to commence action.
He also alleged that some staff in the Accountant General’s office were demanding gratification of about N200,000 to facilitate payment of gratuities.
But the Accountant General, Joseph Adie, in a chat, described as untrue the allegations that officers in charge of processing documents were asking each retiree to cough out a whooping N200,000 before such papers could be processed.
He said, “well, I want to assure Cross Riverians that nobody have told me that there is demand on pensioners to pay anything before they get paid. My office here is not aware of such demand.
“It is a grievous matter to ask a retirees and pensioners to begin to pay monies for their gratuities or whatever. It is an act of wickedness. In a situation like this, I must confess to you that I am not aware of that type of demand from anywhere, and I will be the last person to be a partaker. As we speak, we have cleared 2013,” he said.
Explaining what could have caused the delay in payment, Adie, a Chartered Accountant, said “the highest allocation that came to the State was N3 billion and that at times, the State would receive as paltry as N1.1 billion and N1 billion respectively”, but added that “even States with highest allocations were also finding it hard to pay as at when due.”
“I am sure you will be surprise that even those States that have the highest allocation owe pensions. Some of them are not even making effort to pay, but we have tried. We are paying, in fact at a point, we were setting aside N200million every month for payment of gratuities.
On why some persons who retired between 2016 and 2017 had gotten their gratuities paid while those in 2015 and 2016 were yet to be paid, the AG said it was an express order from the Governor of the State that some persons with critical health issues in that batch be paid.
“You know some people have health issues like spinal cord problem. Yes in cases like this, I get my special approval from the governor that such people be paid. They are only two on the line now but if he approves and there are no funds, we still have to pray but the truth is that such are considered as special cases,” he stressed.
From FRIDAY NWAGBARA, Calabar.
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Residents of Benin City, Edo State, have decried rising pharmaceutical costs in Nigeria, saying the situation now forces many people to abandon prescribed medications, patronise native remedies, or purchase incomplete drug dosages regularly.
The residents expressed frustration during interviews with The Tide’s source, lamenting that worsening economic conditions had negatively affected access to proper healthcare and medical treatment across communities nationwide.
The source reports that increasing drug prices, consultation charges, and laboratory fees have made healthcare services largely unaffordable for many low-income earners struggling to survive the economic hardship.
At Best Care Pharmacy in the New Lagos Road area, Mrs. Rose Imadiyi became emotional while explaining how financial difficulties prevented her from purchasing prescribed medications after recently falling ill in Benin City.
Imadiyi said the prescribed drugs cost about N7,000, while she had only N4,000 available for feeding and healthcare expenses.
“I chose my children over drugs because they still need to eat. I could not spend all the money on medication and leave nothing for food”, Imadiyi stated, emphasising that rising healthcare costs had forced many struggling families to make painful decisions between treatment and feeding needs.
A pharmacist, Dr. Nkem Daniella Ogbidi-Emmanuel, attributed the growing trend to worsening economic conditions, saying many patients now prioritised feeding above healthcare because they lacked resources required to meet rising medical expenses nationwide.
“A lot of people do not have the wherewithal to cater for their health needs because of the economic situation of the country today”, Ogbidi-Emmanuel said, while speaking on challenges facing patients recently.
“Many of them believe that if they can eat well, they can manage their illnesses”, she said, adding that some people now regarded proper medical care as a luxury because of rising healthcare expenses.
“Some even see proper medical care as a luxury because apart from drugs, they have to pay consultation fees and for laboratory investigations”, the healthcare provider said.
Ogbidi-Emmanuel continued that some patients now requested medications without undergoing proper medical tests in efforts to reduce treatment costs, warning that such practices remained dangerous and could worsen underlying health conditions significantly nationwide.
“Some patients will say, ‘Doctor, just give me medicine’, because they cannot afford tests for malaria, typhoid or other infections”, she said, while describing the growing desperation among struggling patients across the country.
“Even when medications are prescribed, many cannot afford to buy the complete dosage because drugs are not subsidised in Nigeria”,Ogbidi-Emmanuel said, and called for improved healthcare support systems and government intervention nationwide.
She added that nearly 80 per cent of patients currently struggled to balance healthcare expenses with basic survival needs, urging authorities to introduce subsidies on essential medicines and strengthen public healthcare support programmes nationwide.
A midwife, Mrs. Juliet Egbede, corroborated the development, saying many Nigerians now preferred to “eat to live before treating illness” because increasing financial hardship had made healthcare inaccessible for struggling households nationwide.
Egbede explained that some patients resorted to incomplete dosages or relied heavily on painkillers to manage symptoms temporarily because financial difficulties prevented them from accessing proper medical treatment and prescribed medications regularly nationwide.
She warned that such unhealthy practices could worsen medical conditions, especially among vulnerable persons, emphsising the importance of adhering strictly to prescribed treatments in spite of prevailing economic hardship and rising healthcare costs across Nigeria.
Another resident, Mr. Ola Rasheed, said he had stopped visiting hospitals and pharmacies regularly because rising drug prices and medical expenses had made healthcare services increasingly difficult for ordinary Nigerians to afford recently nationwide.
“I bought agbo (local herbal concoction) because it is cheaper. I hardly go to pharmacies or hospitals again because the drugs are too expensive”, Rasheed said, while describing his healthcare challenges in Benin City.
Similarly, Mrs. Messy Omokhua said whenever she could not afford prescribed medications, she opted for cheaper brands or reduced quantities, hoping to recover quickly in spite of not completing the recommended treatment dosage for illnesses.
“Sometimes I buy cheaper alternatives or reduce the quantity and hope to get better quickly”, Omokhua said, lamenting that economic hardship had made it increasingly difficult for residents to access complete healthcare treatments nationwide.
Paramount ruler of Onopa Community in the Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, HRH Tamama Morris (Ogbo IX), has praised the newly coronated King of the Atissa Kingdom of the State, HRM King Victor Diemeze Awala (Ebeni-ebe VIII) on his successful ascension to the throne.
Onopa is one of the communities of the Atissa Kingdom, landlords of the Bayelsa State Government House.
The Tide gathered that the new Monarch was coronated and presented staff of office by the State Government on the 2nd of May, 2026 amidst celebrations.
The royal father, who described the monarch as an accomplished traditional ruler, business tycoon, and administrator, said with his indepth experience in the traditional affairs of the kingdom prior to his ascension to the throne, he believes he will discharge the onerous duties of his throne creditably with dignity and purpose.
He noted that King Awala was working closely with the late King of the Kingdom, HRM Godwin Gurosi Igodo, who past on in 2025, and therefore understood what it takes to be the number one royal father of the ancient kingdom, including peace building and disputes resolution, amongst others.
“The newly coronated Ebeni-Ebe, VIII, the monarch of our Kingdom, Atissa, HRM King Victor Diemeze Awala, has the requisite experience to lead the kingdom.
“Before he was made king, he has already been working closely with the late king of the Kingdom, HRM King Godwin Gurosi Igodo, who at a time due to his deteriorating health challenges had to direct him, Awala, to act on his behalf.
“Truth be told, within those acting period, King Awala did very well and achieved so much for the kingdom. He was always working in tandem with the traditions and customs of the kingdom, especially in peace building and development.
“I would describe King Awala as a round peg in a round hole. He’s the best man from the Atissa Kingdom to ascend the throne after the death of the former King, and I’ve no fears that he will do very well as king”, the Onopa royal father said.
Ariwera Ibibo-Howells, Yenagoa
Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has advised the outgoing Prof. Benjamin Okaba-led executive committee of the Ijaw National Congress (INC) and the Electoral Committee not to proceed with the advertised inauguration of a new executive scheduled for May 14, 2026.
The Governor in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, was quoted as saying his decision was based on the legal issues arising from the recent purported election of a new executive for the foremost Ijaw nation socio-cultural organisation.
The Tide gathered that the Governor was the pioneer INC Organising Secretary.
Diri contended that as a leader and key stakeholder, his primary interest was the unity of the Ijaw ethnic nationality and the resolution of all the issues thrown up by the election.
He expressed concern that the INC leadership, without informing him or seeking his consent, went ahead to use his name and official title in advertising the forthcoming programme.
He said this was capable of sending out a wrong signal and creating confusion within the Ijaw nation.
“Let me be unequivocal that I am not in support of anyone trying to fractionalise the INC or cause disaffection in the Ijaw nation.
“At the moment, Ijaw leaders are working towards resolving the crisis that arose from the purported election of a new INC leadership. The matter is even still a subject of litigation. So why the hurry?”, the Governor queried.
“My advice to the outgoing Okaba-led Exco is to tread cautiously and allow the dispute resolution processes to go through.
“As a leader of the Ijaw nation, my uppermost concern and responsibility is to ensure that our people are united and co-exist in harmony”, he said.
He cautioned against promoting division and disunity through an important leadership organisation as the INC.
According to the Bayelsa governor, the INC remains the most critical and effective voice of the Ijaw people and no attempt should be made to undermine its legitimacy and integrity.
Ariwera Ibibo-Howells, Yenagoa
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