The Zamfara State Government has uncovered 2,363 ghost workers following a recently concluded verification exercise for civil and public servants in the state.
A committee led by the state Head of Service was constituted by Governor Dauda Lawal in August 2024 to conduct the verification process, aimed at sanitizing the payroll system and ensuring efficiency in governance.
A statement by the governor’s spokesman, Sulaiman Bala Idris, revealed that the verification exercise also exposed 220 minors who were illegally receiving monthly salaries as civil servants.
The statement emphasized that the verification was necessary as part of the state government’s efforts to implement 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, which included 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 tasked with:
Verifying and integrating nominal and payroll systems.
Creating electronic employee files to ensure transparency and accountability.
According to the final report submitted to the governor:
27,109 permanent workers were successfully cleared.
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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.
The statement noted that the verification process is ongoing and is part of the state’s broader strategy to improve governance, reduce corruption, and ensure efficient resource management.
“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 concluded.
With the removal of ghost workers and the elimination of fraudulent salaries, the Zamfara State Government is set to save over N200 million monthly, ensuring that public funds are properly utilized to enhance service delivery and workers’ welfare.
