Ebonyi State Government has announced that it will begin payment of the new minimum wage in January 2020.
Governor David Umahi, revealed this on Friday, December 20, while signing the N178bn appropriation bill into law.
Umahi pointed out that his administration will not be able to pay incremental arrears to the workers due to paucity of funds.
He lamented that top businessmen in the state have refused to pay taxes in order to boost the state Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
The governor urged the state Board of Internal Revenue, to be more serious in their drive for revenue, adding that nobody should be exempted.
Stating; “There will be no sacred cow in this state in getting IGR. You pay in Abuja, pay in Lagos, pay in Enugu but when you come to Ebonyi, you will not pay. There will not be anything like that. I am ready to quarrel with anybody and Internal Revenue Board should use whatever that is of my interest and set example”.
“There is so much that people are collecting but it is not remitted to government, we will not allow it to continue”.
Umahi further disclosed that the 2019 budget performance was 60 percent which he said was one of the highest in the country.
Recall that the 2019 appropriation bill was presented to Ebonyi state Assembly on Friday December 13, and it passed first and second reading.
