By Sylvanus Viashima, Jalingo
As Muslim faithfuls celebrate Eid-el-Kabir today, over 7000 civil servants on the payroll of Taraba State government are groaning as they have been declared ghost workers and removed from the payroll.
A biometrics screening committee set up by the state’s commissioner for Finance Mrs. Serah Enoch Adi, headed by a permanent secretary under the office of Secretary to Taraba State Government (SGS) Mallam Haruna Abdulkadiri after its assignment declared over 7000 civil servants in the state as ghost workers.
Our Correspondent gather that no fewer than 70 workers under the office of Accountant General of the state who have been working in the department for over 27 years and have been constant on the payroll of the state have been sacked by the Abdulkadiri-led
committee.
Investigation further revealed that the state’s Accountant General Mr. Gaius Danjuma had in 2024 conducted the same biometric screening and came up with a total number of 24,000 genuine civil servants under the state’s payroll, which was submitted to the state Governor Agbu Kefas.
It was gathered that the Abdulkadiri led committee came up with a total number of 19,000 civil servants on his list after his biometric verification exercise and declared those who recently gained employment with the state government and the other 5000 workers who were screened by the Accountant General as ghost workers, amounting to a total of over 7000 civil servants that were deleted on the payroll.
Those declared as ghost workers have already been removed from the payroll of the government, our investigation revealed.
The civil servants who spoke to our correspondent said the development has deleted a huge number of workers on the payroll, including those who are serving as Directors and deputy Directors in the state.
“My boss in the office, who is a director that has served the state for over 28 years, has been deleted from the payroll; over 200 civil servants have been declared ghost workers by the Abdulkadiri-led committee; here in the Ministry of Information, we could not get our salaries; the situation is so confusing,” a secretary at the Ministry of Information who spoke to our correspondent stated.
Some of the victims who are Muslims lament that for them and their families it is a sorrowful Sallah celebration, since they have been unduly removed from the payroll and could not get their salaries.
They call for quick intervention from the state Governor Agbu Kefas, stating that the governor’s quick intervention would save many lives since they have no alternative means of livelihood apart from civil service job.
Peter Jediel, the chairman Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) Taraba state chapter confirm that he has engaged the Abdulkadiri led committee over the discrepancies in payment of salaries in the state.
“We are yet to conclude our engagement with the committee, we will call you as soon as we are done with the committee” he said.
The commissioner for finance Taraba state government, Sarah Enoch Adi did not respond to the message sent to her for confirmation of the development, although, Haruna Abdulkadiri, the chairman of the biometric screening committee told our correspondent that he will react to the issues at appropriate time.
“I will speak to you at appropriate time, I am seen such developments on papers, I will call you as soon as the time comes” Abdulkadiri said.