Oyo State Governor and Allied People’s Movement (APM) presidential candidate, ‘Seyi Makinde, has urged striking workers at the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) Teaching Hospital, Ogbomoso, to suspend their strike, assuring them that outstanding demands would be addressed.
Makinde gave the assurance during a meeting with stakeholders at the hospital on Thursday, according to a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media, Sulaimon Olarenwaju, in Ibadan on Friday.
The governor disclosed that Oyo State’s monthly wage bill had risen from ₦4.5 billion in 2019 to ₦18 billion in 2026, despite increased federal allocations. He attributed the state’s financial challenges to rising obligations and inflation.
He said outstanding salary arrears, minimum wage arrears, promotion arrears and the Medical Residency Training Bill would be addressed, adding that ₦162 million in salary arrears would be paid by mid-November.
Makinde also said ₦38 million in minimum wage and promotion arrears owed to workers for October, November and December 2024 would be cleared. He pledged to sign the Medical Residency Training Bill once he received the clean copies, targeting the first week of November.
Appealing for an end to the strike, he said, “The first step is for you to call off the strike, and once you assure me of that, we can move forward.”
The governor also approved an increase in cleaners’ monthly salaries at the hospital from ₦15,000 to ₦80,000, bringing their pay in line with the national minimum wage.
READ ALSO: Makinde Promises LAUTECH Hospital Workers Salary Arrears, Raises Cleaners’ Pay to N80,000
Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Oluwaserimi Ajetunmobi, and hospital management urged workers and union leaders to cooperate with the government to end recurring strikes.
