Niger Delta Avengers have rendered me unable to pay salaries, Okowa cries out

The Delta State governor made the revelation yesterday during a stakeholders meeting on, “Creating A Peaceful Atmosphere for the Development of Delta State and the Niger Delta Region,”

His words: “The larger Nigerian government has been in financial crisis over dwindling oil prices. Increased production would have helped cushion the impact but instead we are faced with destruction of oil assets.

Dealing with dwindling oil prices and destruction of oil assets, we are now producing just half of our quota. And we are all really worried because of the greater effect is on Delta State.

Before now we receive up to N20bn monthly, but what we have now is so low. Last time we got N3.4bn. Last month what we received has dropped to N3bn. We now get 1/7th of what we use to have.

We met a wage bill of N7.4bn. With biometrics and rationalization, we trimmed that to about N6.8bn. With the situation, we have in our hands, we are not in position to pay workers regularly anymore.”