The Delta State Commissioner for Finance, Mr. David Edevbie, said on Monday that the state’s domestic debt profile stood at N237.7bn as at September.
Edevbie, who disclosed this in Asaba during a ministerial news conference organised by the state’s Ministry of Information, said most of the debts were inherited from the previous administration.
He said that the amount included debts owed to contractors and commercial banks and those owed as pension and gratuity arrears, salary bailout, and judgment debts.
He said that contractors alone were owed over N100bn, but expressed optimism that the figure would reduce after the completion of the ongoing debt verification by the ministry.
The commissioner said that the state owed over N23bn as pensions and gratuities and N779.3m as judgement debts.
Edevbie, however, said that most of the borrowings had already been restructured into long-term debts of between 10 and 18 years.
The commissioner explained that the essence of the restructuring was to reduce pressure on the state’s cash flow.
On achievements of the ministry, Edevbie noted that the state government was committed to paying the monthly salaries of workers and pensions.
He said that due to the decline in the state’s revenues from the Federation Account, it had become difficult for it to pay salaries and pensions as at when due.
He said, “This problem is not peculiar to Delta State alone but a nationwide challenge. The state government as a matter of necessity, devised prudent ways of ensuring that staff salaries and pensions are paid.
“This was achieved by withholding certain deductions monthly when the revenue was unable to accommodate the total salaries.
“In such cases, only the net salaries were paid to the beneficiaries while the deductions were released subsequently upon availability of funds.
“As at the end of October 2016, the state was owing N9.2bn as arrears of such deductions.”
NAN
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