Fubara Orders Immediate Payment of August Salaries, Moves to Restore Workers’ Confidence
Port Harcourt, September 22, 2025.
Barely four days after his reinstatement as Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara has moved swiftly to address workers’ grievances by directing the immediate payment of August salaries owed to local government employees and pensioners.
The unpaid wages date back to the tenure of the interim administration, which conducted a controversial verification exercise in August 2025.
That exercise, according to the interim Administrator, uncovered what was described as an “inflated wage bill” across the 23 local government areas of the state. As a result, many staff and retirees were denied their pay for the month.
For weeks, civil servants and pensioners voiced frustration. “It has been a struggle,” said Mrs. Rebecca Koko, a retired schoolteacher in Ahoada. “We served this state for decades.
To be told our names were missing from a so-called verification list was heartbreaking.”
The governor’s directive, issued on Monday, seeks to end that uncertainty. He instructed heads of personnel in all 23 LGAs to compile and submit comprehensive lists of verified workers and pensioners to ensure transparency and prevent further delays.
“No genuine worker should suffer because of administrative lapses,” Fubara said in a statement released by Government House. “The labour force is the backbone of this state, and my administration will not allow their welfare to be politicized.”
The move marks one of Fubara’s first major policy steps since returning to office on September 18, 2025, after a six-month suspension that plunged Rivers State into political turmoil.
Analysts say the gesture is a deliberate attempt to rebuild trust with the state’s civil service, a group that has long felt marginalized during periods of political crisis.
Political commentator Dr. Tamuno Briggs described the order as both strategic and symbolic. “Workers form the heart of local governance in Rivers. By prioritizing their welfare immediately upon his reinstatement, the governor is signaling that stability and continuity are back on the table,” he said.
However, questions remain over how the government intends to tackle the issue of the inflated wage bill.
An unnamed senior official in the Ministry of Finance suggested that while the governor’s directive is laudable, a deeper audit may be necessary to sanitize the system. “Verification should not be an excuse for hardship, but neither should it be abandoned,” the official noted.
For workers like Emmanuel Nwosu, a clerical staff in Port Harcourt City LGA, the governor’s order is a relief. “This is a welcome development. We only want to be paid for the work we do. If he continues this way, workers will rally behind him.”
As Rivers State gradually recovers from months of administrative uncertainty, the prompt payment of salaries may prove to be a litmus test of Governor Fubara’s renewed mandate, and a signal of how he intends to govern in the months ahead.
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