FG Begins Payment of February Salary, Explains Reason for Delay

• The federal government has started paying February 2026 salaries after resolving a technical glitch
• One month’s wage award arrears have been approved for payment, with others scheduled in phases
• The move follows the labour union’s ultimatum and talks between government officials and union leaders

Legit.ng Journalist Muslim Muhammad Yusuf is a 2025 Wole Soyinka Award winner, with over 8 years of experience in investigative reporting, human rights, politics, governance, and accountability in Nigeria.

The federal government has commenced payment of February 2026 salaries to treasury-funded workers, attributing the recent delay to a technical hitch.

In a statement issued on Monday by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF), the government confirmed that the payment process began the same day.

According to the statement, the delay was caused by a technical issue, which has now been resolved.

“The delay in the payment of the February 2026 salaries was due to technical hitch, which has been tackled, and necessary measures have been put in place to prevent a recurrence,” the OAGF said.

Read also

Millions of Nigerians receive cash transfers from FG, Wale Edun discloses exact figure

As reported by the Cable, the development comes days after organised labour in the federal public service issued a deadline demanding the release of funds to settle three months’ outstanding wage award arrears and other allowances.

The leadership of the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (Trade Union side) had warned that failure to meet its February 27 deadline could trigger decisive action by eight unions in the civil service.

Wage award arrears

The OAGF also disclosed that approval has been received and the process concluded for the payment of one month’s wage award arrears from the three outstanding months.

Earlier on Monday, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, announced that the government would begin clearing the arrears.

In a post shared by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Edun explained that the May 2024 wage-award arrears would be paid alongside the February salaries.

He further outlined the schedule for the remaining payments: the June 2024 arrears will be settled after March salaries, while the July 2024 arrears will be cleared after April salaries.

The meeting that led to the announcement was convened by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi, amid labour’s threat to picket the Ministry of Finance over the outstanding payments.

Read also

Breaking: 3 of Tinubu's top ministers drilled over 2025 budget controversy as reps take action

FG to spend N6.5tn for payment of minimum wage

Legit.ng earlier reported that the federal government, led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has announced that personnel expenditure will rise by at least 60% in 2025 due to the implementation of the new national minimum wage and consequential salary adjustments for civil servants.

With N4.1 trillion allocated for personnel costs in the 2024 budget, the 60% increase translates into an additional N2.46 trillion, bringing the total to an estimated N6.56 trillion in the 2025 budget.

This information was contained in the newly released 2025-2027 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper, which The Punch newspaper obtained on Sunday, November 17.

Source: Legit.ng