Bauchi State Government, has discovered that over 41, 000 civil servants do not have Bank Verification Numbers (BVN) but have being collecting salaries in the last three years.
Governor Bala Mohammed who made this revelation in an interactive session with selected journalists said since the discovery, government has stopped paying the affected workers pending when the anomalies are resolved.
Mohammed, however said workers who have sort out their BVNs issues have been put back on the pay roll and warned Banks against connivance with those seeking fresh BVNs, adding that money for their salaries have been warehoused and would be paid as soon as they proved the government otherwise.
He decried the prevalence of ghost workers in Bauchi state under the last administration which had over bloated the wage bill of the state, leading to arrears of salaries, pensions and gratuities of civil servants as well as retirees.
The former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) also disclosed that Bauchi is the most indebted state with over N100 billion debt borrowed by former Governor Mohammed Abubakar, yet no tangible project was initiated.
According to him, the last administration obtained a loan of about N40 billion for payment of workers but arrears and gratuities were not paid and the money developed wings.
“Our hospitals are in shambles, our schools are in shambles, we have 1.3 million out of school children even our primary schools are blown off three years ago. That is where we were when we came.
“But we must thank the federal government, we must thank the President, we must thank the agencies under him like UBEC and TETFUND. We have been able to give the counterpart funding and we have accessed close to N10 billion both for tertiary and secondary education.
“Some states accessed up to N28 billion from the federal government, we only accessed N650 million, definitely, the fault is not that of the federal government, is our fault. There are indices, there are road maps and processes.
“It is not true that Bauchi is broke, it is not true that there is no money in the state government. There is money to do projects, there is money to pay salaries and allowances, there is money to pay pensions and gratuities. Everybody get alert on 25, 26 or 27, pensioners are receiving their alert at the same time”, he said.
Mohammed stated that his administration is determined to make a difference that would make Bauchi a modern Nigeria where everybody, irrespective of his or her background will find the state a home and an enabling environment would be created for investors.
He expressed delight that very soon Bauchi will join the Niger Delta states as an oil producing state, pointing out that the state also has lot of solid minerals and all that is needed is human capital, resources, investors as well as alternative finances to take Bauchi to the next level.
Speaking on the state of affairs in the FCT, ever since he left as Minister five years ago, Mohammed said, “I am happy with the caliber and the capacity of the person in charge. The gentleman is the transparent public servant I have ever seen. Irrespective of what anybody will say, I raise my hand for him for given definite dynamism and continuity in the system.
“All the projects started by me and my predecessors are been continued by Musa Bello. He is not personally interested in anything. He is not personally interested in who does procurement. If all Ministers are like Bello, then there wouldn’t have been abandoned projects.
“He continued with everything, the Airport road, the outer express way to Kubwa, all the procurements had been done and the flag off but he continued and finished it. That is how it should be done. For this very laudable spirit and with this kind of thing, he will write his name in the annals of history as one of the best statesmen that will superintend over the FCT”.
James Kwen, Abuja
