The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) has clarified that there were no shortfalls in the salaries paid to federal workers in January and February 2025.
In a statement issued on Friday in Abuja, Bawa Mokwa, Director of Press and Public Relations at the OAGF, explained that the salaries received during these months reflected workers’ normal earnings following the exhaustion of various arrears paid between October and December 2024.
Mokwa emphasised that it was necessary to address concerns about purported salary reductions to dispel any anxiety among workers. He noted that several arrears had been settled in the last quarter of 2024, including arrears for the national minimum wage adjustment, the 25% and 35% salary increases, and wage awards.
“All these arrears were disbursed between October and December 2024, leading to a temporary increase in salaries during that period,” Mokwa stated. “From January 2025, normal salary payments resumed after these arrears were fully settled. This may have led some workers to mistakenly believe they had been short-changed, whereas they were actually receiving their standard salaries.”
He further clarified that the salaries paid in January and February 2025 would remain unchanged unless the Federal Government reviews wages in the future.
Mokwa also addressed instances of overpayments in December 2024, attributing them to a system error. “The error has been rectified, and deductions are currently being made from the salaries of affected workers to recover the overpayments. This process will continue until all excess payments are fully retrieved,” he said.
Regarding the payment of promotion arrears, Mokwa explained that the process was overseen by a standing committee on promotion and salary arrears within the Budget Office of the Federation (BOF). The BOF compiles and verifies all outstanding salary and promotion arrears from various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) before forwarding them in batches to the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) for payment.
He stated that IPPIS had fully processed payments for batches one to six and was awaiting further batches from the BOF for subsequent disbursement.
Mokwa reiterated the OAGF’s commitment to efficiently managing the IPPIS, given its critical role in ensuring timely and accurate salary payments for federal workers. He urged workers with genuine salary complaints to follow the established formal procedures to facilitate prompt resolution.
