Jigawa govt cracks down on 7,000 ghost workers in payroll cleanup

The Jigawa State Government has identified and removed over 7,000 ghost workers from its payroll in a major crackdown on fraudulent salary claims, according to the state’s Commissioner for Finance, Hannatu Sabo.

Speaking at a press briefing in Dutse to mark the two-year anniversary of Governor Umar Namadi’s administration, Mrs Sabo revealed that the discovery came through a comprehensive verification exercise.

“The fake employees were removed from the payroll as they failed to report for the verification exercise,” she explained.

She emphasised that the exercise was part of a broader government strategy to clean up the civil service and eliminate false salary claims.

“The government’s commitment to transparency and accountability has also been demonstrated through the verification exercise and the removal of ghost workers from the payroll,” she added.

Ghost Worker Clampdown Paves Way for New Jobs

The move has paved the way for fresh recruitments under the state’s J-Health, J-Teach, and J-Agro schemes, which aim to revitalise the healthcare, education, and agriculture sectors.

“The exercise also led to the recruitment of new employees under the J-Health, J-Teach, and J-Agro programmes,” Mrs. Sabo noted.

She further highlighted Jigawa’s progress in implementing a new salary scale that makes it one of the highest-paying states in Nigeria.

Salary Reform for Jigawa State Workers

According to her, civil servants in Jigawa now receive their salaries before the 25th of each month, as directed by Governor Namadi.

Mrs. Sabo also revealed that the state government has invested in the private Khadija University in Majia and acquired shares in the Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO) to enhance education and electricity supply.

“The purchase of Khadija University and the acquisition of shares in KEDCO are expected to boost the state’s revenue and improve the quality of education and electricity supply,” she said.

Additionally, the administration is bolstering support for microfinance institutions and plans to open bank branches in rural areas to improve access to financial services.