By Laleye Dipo in Minna
Niger State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello, on Tuesday declared that “ghost workers still exist in the civil service” despite the series of staff verifications carried out by the administration.
Bello said it had recently been discovered that some workers “are drawing salaries and allowances of between three and five staff monthly”.
The governor made the revelation when he addressed workers at the 123 field as part of activities marking this year’s May Day.
However, the governor did not disclose if some workers had been arrested or the amount the government had lost to the ghost workers.
Bello warned that anyone caught in the act would not only be dismissed but would be prosecuted.
On the proposed new minimum wage, the governor said a committee had been set up to advise the government on the appropriate step to take when the federal government announced a new minimum wage.
However, the governor said with a monthly salary bill of N2.4 billion and a monthly income of N4 billion, it is doubtful if the government would be able to meet a N65,000 minimum wage.
He said the government had procured 200 units of tractors and their implements which would be distributed to farmers this planting season, adding that government would also maintain the N5,500 per bag price of fertiliser this year.
He advised workers to take advantage of these incentives to improve their condition of living.
The state chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Mr. Ndako Idris, lamented the poor condition under which workers were working in the state and called for improvement.
