A cross-section of civil servants across ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) in Ondo State is demanding the immediate payment of unpaid salary arrears ranging from one to five months, according to findings by The Stewardship.
The backlog largely affects newly recruited staff employed under the administration of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa. Despite repeated appeals and formal representations to secure their entitlements, the payments remain stalled.
The Stewardship gathered that the Office of the Head of Service, led by Chief Segun Odusanya, has found itself in an increasingly helpless and frustrating position over the lingering crisis. Although his office prepared the necessary documentation and pushed repeatedly for disbursement, insiders revealed that the Head of Service has hit a brick wall, with the situation appearing completely beyond his control. Sources noted that the top civil servant is visibly frustrated by the stalemate but has remained cautious, seemingly reluctant to step on toes or confront powerful interests within the administration as his interventions continue to yield no results.
Further findings indicate that the bureaucratic bottleneck spans key financial offices. Within the Ministry of Finance, officials have reportedly cited a lack of final approval from Governor Aiyedatiwa as the reason for withholding the funds.
Similarly, when The Stewardship contacted the Office of the Accountant-General, an insider who spoke on the condition of anonymity disclosed that the office is also “waiting for approval from above.” When pressed further to clarify the exact authority from whom the directive is being awaited, the source declined to comment.
Affected workers have questioned the prolonged delay, pointing to rising federal allocations to the state and arguing that civil servants should not bear the brunt of administrative hold-ups.
Publicly available Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) records from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) show that the Ondo State Government received ₦137.74 billion in net federal allocations between January and July 2026 alone (from a gross allocation of ₦146.88 billion), a 31.9 percent increase over the same seven-month period in 2025, with its most recent reported monthly net disbursement reaching ₦26.61 billion.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity for fear of victimization, one affected employee said workers have exhausted every official channel without receiving a concrete response.
“We have done everything humanly possible to get the authorities to listen to our plea, all to no avail,” the worker said, adding that relentless inflation has eroded their purchasing power and forced many of them into heavy debt just to survive.
When contacted, the Ondo State Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Olopade Ademola, stated that the union’s official records as of October do not indicate that the state government owes workers salary arrears.
Comrade Ademola noted that Governor Aiyedatiwa’s administration has prioritized workers’ welfare across the state, particularly in the payment of gratuities and pensions. He urged any civil servant experiencing unpaid arrears to formally submit their complaints to his office, assuring them that the union’s doors remain open and that verified grievances will be promptly addressed.
With administrative channels deadlocked across the Head of Service, the Ministry of Finance, and the Accountant-General’s office, observers and affected workers say the responsibility now rests squarely on Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa to intervene directly, break the bureaucratic logjam, and demonstrate decisively that he is firmly in charge of his government.
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