The Oyo State Governor and the presidential candidate of the Allied People’s Movement, ‘Seyi Makinde, has assured striking workers at the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Teaching Hospital, Ogbomoso, that the government will address their outstanding demands.
The governor gave the assurance during a meeting with stakeholders at the teaching hospital in Ogbomoso on Thursday.
Makinde, in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media, Sulaimon Olarenwaju, in Ibadan on Friday, said, “Despite public assumptions about increased Federal allocations, Oyo’s wage bill has risen sharply from ₦4.5 billion in 2019 to ₦18 billion in 2026. Issues including salary arrears, minimum wage arrears, promotion arrears, and the Medical Residency Training Bill would be resolved promptly.”
He appealed to the workers to be understanding, noting that the state’s economic challenges stemmed from rising financial obligations that now far exceeded available revenue.
The governor added that major infrastructure projects had also become significantly more expensive, citing the 76-kilometre Iseyin–Fapote–Ogbomoso Road, which cost ₦43 billion in 2023 but would now require at least ₦200 billion due to inflation and broader economic pressures.
Makinde said, “Initially, I didn’t want to respond to those who are on strike. But if there are challenges, we must find ways to solve them. You put this government in place. The first step is for you to call off the strike, and once you assure me of that, we can move forward. This is our state; how we lay our bed is how we will lie on it.”
He emphasised the need for workers to be considerate, given the state’s current financial realities.
“When I assumed office in 2019, FAAC was around ₦6–7 billion, and the first salary bill I signed was ₦4.5 billion. Today, the same road project we executed for ₦43 billion would cost ₦200 billion. That is our situation. The ₦162 million salary arrears owed to workers would be paid.”
The governor noted that the October salary bill had already been prepared and signed, adding that the arrears would be paid by mid-November.
Makinde added that although he had about seven months left in office, he was committed to resolving as many outstanding issues as possible to enable the next administration to focus on new priorities.
“The Medical Residency Training Bill will be signed once I receive the clean copies. Our target is the first week of November.”
Addressing the Joint Health Sector Unions’ (JOHESU) concerns, he said the minimum wage and promotion arrears for October, November and December 2024, amounting to ₦38 million, would also be cleared.
“I will look for ₦200 million so that once salaries are paid, we can settle these arrears, hopefully before mid-November.”
In a move that drew applause, Makinde approved an increase in the monthly salaries of cleaners at the teaching hospital from ₦15,000 to ₦80,000, aligning their pay with the national minimum wage. The decision followed an unscheduled appeal by the cleaners during the governor’s visit.
In her remarks, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Oluwaserimi Ajetunmobi, thanked the governor for his consistent support for the health sector and assured workers that the administration was committed to ending recurring strikes.
In their separate remarks, the Chief Medical Director of LAUTECH Teaching Hospital, Prof Olawale Olakulehin, and the Board Chairman, Prof Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, also thanked the governor and urged staff and union leaders to cooperate with the government.
Representatives of resident doctors, including Dr Mustapha Adedapo, Dr John Oladapo, the second vice-president of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors, and Comrade Olobaniyi David of JOHESU, praised the governor for his interventions, ongoing renovations at the LAUTECH Teaching Hospital Annex in Oyo and the payment of some arrears.
They appealed for the sustained implementation of professional allowance tables for resident doctors and allied health workers.
Those at the meeting included the Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Adebo Ogundoyin; the Secretary to the State Government, Prof Musibau Babatunde; the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Bashorun Akinwale Akinwole; the Head of Service, Dr Adenike Fashina; the Deputy Chief of Staff, Kazeem Adeniyi; and the Senior Executive Assistant to the Governor on General Duties, Chief Bayo Lawal.
Also present were the state deputy governorship candidate of the APM, Mufutau Open Salawu; former Chief Medical Director of the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Prof Temitope Alonge; commissioners; labour union leaders; and other dignitaries.