This is very good news. Civil Servants (people who work in Ministries, not public servants in agencies) have worked for years earning very low pay and virtually no benefits. Other than joining NLC general strikes, I don’t remember them ever going on strike for their own pay and benefits.
The Monetisation Policy of 2003 and the subsequent Sale of Government Houses meant that most of them could no longer afford to live in town. Many moved to neighbouring states and commute daily from there, spending most of the meager salaries on transportation.
The restoration of Gratuity payments and the help with home ownership are the biggest deals in this announcement. Through this too, we will stop the nonsense that you can’t get an allowance if your event is in the FCT but will get it if you just take it to a border town in Nassarawa or Niger state where most civil servants live anyway. 🙄
Well done to President Tinubu for approving these benefits and to Mrs Esther Didi Wilson-Jack, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, for advocating for them.
The Prophet ﷺ described the bankrupt person as someone who comes with prayer, fasting, and charity…But also came after harming people.
Insulting them.
Slandering them.
Taking rights.
Hurting others.
So their good deeds are given away to those they wronged.
Which is why I push back against the idea that our social values are warped simply because we are poor.
The deeper problem is that good character is not consistently rewarded or respected, and bad character is not reliably shunned or punished.