Yemi Obafemi
In a bid to promote transparency and accountability in service, the Zamfara State Government has identified 2,363 ghost workers who were unlawfully receiving a total of N193.6 million in monthly salaries.
This was revealed after a recently concluded verification exercise for civil and public servants in the state.
In August 2024, Governor Dauda Lawal established a committee, led by the state Head of Service, to conduct a verification process aimed at streamlining the payroll system and enhancing governance efficiency.
The governor’s spokesman, Sulaiman Bala Idris, stated that the verification was essential for the state government’s implementation of the N70,000 minimum wage.
“To improve the efficiency of the Zamfara State civil and public service, Governor Dauda Lawal formed a high-level committee tasked with verifying the state government’s payroll,” the statement read.
The committee, comprising key officials such as the Commissioner of Finance, Chairman of the Zamfara State Labour Union, Accountant General, Auditor General, Statistician General, and the Executive Secretary of ZITDA, was assigned the responsibility of:
Verifying and integrating nominal and payroll systems.
Creating electronic employee files to ensure transparency and accountability.
As stated in the final report submitted to the governor:
27,109 permanent workers were successfully cleared.
2,363 ghost workers were discovered, receiving N193.6 million in salaries every month.
1,082 workers were due for retirement, yet continued to receive N80.5 million monthly.
67 workers on secondment were still receiving N354,927.60 monthly.
395 contract staff, 261 unregistered workers, and 213 employees on study leave were flagged for further investigation.
75 employees were hired as minors and had appointment dates that did not match official records.
207 workers were not cleared and have been suspended, with salaries amounting to N16.3 million monthly.
12 workers were found to be on the payroll but absent from the database, collecting N726,594 monthly.
“These verification exercises are continuous efforts to monitor the Zamfara workforce and ensure transparency and accountability in service, especially as the minimum wage payments begin in March of this year,” the statement read.
