A press statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary, Kula Tersoo, and made available to journalists in Makurdi on Thursday, revealed that Benue State Governor, Hyacinth Alia, has exposed the presence of at least 2,500 ghost workers on the payrolls of the local government areas in the state. The state consists of 23 local governments.
Governor Alia clarified the reason behind the delayed payment of salaries for teachers in primary and post-primary schools, as well as local government staff.
He stated that there was a necessity to rectify and eliminate all the fraudulent activities and manipulations that were introduced during the previous administration.
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The governor’s statement explained that the investigation into the activities of local governments during the past administration brought to light the reckless padding of wage bills and manipulation of the payroll.
In summary, Governor Alia’s decision to delay salary payments was prompted by the discovery of fraudulent practices, including the inclusion of non-existent workers on the payroll and other misrepresentations.
This was found to be prevalent in both the education sector and local government staff payments.
“He emphasizes that this decision was necessary to address the issue discovered, enabling the government to cleanse and purify the payroll, accurately determining the state’s actual wage bill, and identifying genuine employees deserving of their salaries.
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The initial phase of a comprehensive staff verification and payroll audit for all teachers and local government staff has been completed, and it has already unveiled more than 2500 ghost workers who have been subsequently removed from the payroll.
The identified payroll irregularities from the audit include ghost workers, fictitious schools, double employment, unauthorized hiring, salary inflation, payments to deceased or retired individuals, improper replacements, and wage bill exaggeration.
Governor Alia assures that workers who have successfully undergone screening will receive their salaries before the week’s end.
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He emphasizes that the government is not only rooting out ghost workers and eliminating payroll fraud but is also implementing measures to safeguard the system from future abuses.
To conduct a thorough investigation into alleged mismanagement in the council areas, Alia has suspended all 23 local government chairmen, allowing the state assembly to initiate the necessary inquiry.”
