Staff of the Kwara State Internal Revenue Service, KWIRS, have decried poor welfare situations, rising residing prices and stagnant salaries, regardless of their contributions to the state’s income technology.
In a round issued by the KWIRS chapter of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, ASCSN, the workers lamented that their sacrifices and professionalism, which had place Kwara amongst the extra self-reliant states in the nation, had not been matched by corresponding enhancements in their welfare.
The workers questioned the disparity between their contributions to the state’s income and their welfare, saying many have been battling monetary hardship.
“We block leakages. We are posted to hospitals and other MDAs to secure government revenue. We work under pressure day and night, but we continue to struggle to meet basic needs due to poor salaries,” they lamented.
According to the round signed by the chapter’s Secretary, Adam Ibrahim, many KWIRS employees now exhaust their salaries earlier than the finish of the month due to mortgage deductions from fintech platforms, as nicely as different monetary establishments, forcing them to borrow merely to survive.
The affiliation additional expressed concern that personnel prices had remained unchanged for years, whereas different expenditure heads had continued to enhance.
It additionally cited a wage negotiation settlement dated October 11, 2022, which reportedly acknowledged that the adjustment would be carried out “as soon as it can be accommodated in the budget.”
According to the workers, almost 4 years after the settlement, there had been no implementation or clear indication of when the adjustment would take impact, regardless of the rising value of residing.
The employees stated bills on faculty charges, home hire, transportation and meals had elevated considerably, whereas their salaries remained unchanged.
“We smile outside, but the majority of us are bleeding inside. We cannot continue to generate wealth for the state while we wallow in abject poverty,” the workers declared.
Urging their colleagues to stay united and resolute in pursuing improved welfare, the affiliation stated workers ought to not count on higher situations with out collectively standing up for their pursuits.
It known as on members to stay calm, vigilant and prayerful as a 14-day interval starting October 15, 2026, counted down, with out offering additional particulars about the anticipated motion at its conclusion.
In separate chats with some of the workers, they condemned the state authorities for spending billions of naira on the building of the new Revenue House with out addressing the welfare of the employees who work there.
“What is the essence of a big and beautiful workplace inhabited by poor and suffering workers?” one of them requested.
The KWIRS workers’ grievances add to a rising checklist of labour agitations that have trailed the administration of Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq in latest months, with varied unions throughout the state’s judiciary, well being and schooling sectors additionally elevating comparable considerations over unresolved welfare calls for.
Meanwhile, docs employed by the state authorities have been on a 14-day warning strike since final week, paralysing medical providers at state-owned hospitals throughout the state and leaving sufferers susceptible.
