The Gombe State government has revealed the discovery of 523 ghost workers after the implementation of a biometric verification register for civil servants in the state.
Governor Inuwa Yahaya had made this revelation on Thursday during the induction of newly recruited biometric supervisors in the state.
Manassah Jatau, the Deputy governor representing his superior had stated that the biometric verification, which flagged off three years ago, had exposed non-existent workers and saved the state about N1.5 billion.
Jatau also said that the state deployed 4,000 biometric machines for attendance registration across all areas, leading to the discovery of ghost workers.
“So far this novel initiative has saved the government a monthly sum of N23,758,858 since 2021,” the governor was alleged to have said.
“Additionally, the stats has gotten acknowledgement and support from international organizations such as the World Bank and development partners like the Global Alliance for Vaccination and Immunization (GAVI), which see the scheme as a model to be emulated.”
Inuwa remarked that the presence of ghost workers has negatively impacted social and economic development projects in the state.
Muhammad Magaji, the Commissioner for Finance, had also emphasized that the money saved from the discovery of ghost workers are redirected to payment of promotion arrears and outstanding gratuities.
He guaranteed that the government’s aim was not to reduce funds but to streamline the payroll system for efficiency.
According to Magaji, Gombe State is now recognized as one of the best states in terms of payroll management, with about 305 youths getting recruited as part of the gains of the financial management reforms.
Lastly, as a note of warning, Magaji cautioned the supervisors, asking them to maintain professionalism, after warning against indolence and corrupt practices, remarking that any supervisor caught engaging in such activities would be sacked replaced immediately.
