Job scam: Nasarawa Assembly suspends Deputy Minority Leader

By MICHAEL DAVID, Lafia

The Nasarawa State House of Assembly, has on Monday suspended Deputy Minority Leader, Hon Luka Iliya Zhekaba ( PDP- Obi ii) for his full alleged involvement into the fake employment of 38 secondary school teachers in the state.

Rt .Hon Ibrahim Balarabe Abdullahi, the Speaker of the House who announced the suspension after the House deliberated on the report of the House Committee on Education on the recruitment of 366 teachers and 38 Fake teachers in the pay roll of the State Civil Service during the House proceedings today in Lafia.

The speaker has set up three man Ad-hoc committee to investigate the Hon. Luka Iliya Zhekaba, and to report back to the House within two weeks.

“The committee recommended that Hon Luka Iliya Zhekaba, Deputy Minority Leader of the House should be suspended and Ad-hoc committee be set up to investigate his alleged involvement in the fake employment of the teachers.

“I hereby set up three man Ad- hoc committee to investigate his alleged involvement and report back to the House within two weeks.”

“Hon Suleiman Yakubu Azara, member representing Awe South constituency is the Chairman of the committee, Hon Usman Labaran Shafa, member representing Toto/ Gadabuke constituency and Hon Samuel Tsebe, member representing Akwanga South as members of the committee.”

“While Mr. Ibrahim Musa, the Deputy Clerk of the House is the Secretary of the committee,” he said.

Speaker Balarabe Abdullahi said that the House was not against the employment of the teachers but due process must be follow for equity and fairness and recruitment of teachers should be a periodic exercise.

The Assembly also directed Mr Anthony Ladan, a Senior Accountant, Bureau for Salaries who admitted of including the names of 38 teachers into the pay roll of the state government without the directive from the Commissioner of Finance and Mr Michael Adonye Johnny, a staff of the Ministry of Education, who is a syndicate are to proceed on compulsory retirements.

The House further directed Mr John Nuhu, a former staff of the Teachers Service Commission ( TSC) and Ministry of Information, a syndicate of the fake employment should handed over to the appropriate authority for prosecution,” he said.

The House agreed that the Director of the Bureau for salaries, Mr Sulley Daheer and other staff of the Bureau be redeployed to other departments of the state Ministry of Finance.

“A person with ICT knowledge with proven integrity to be deployed to the Bureau for Salaries to take over the salaries of civil servants in the state,” he added.

The speaker urged the management of the state Teachers Service Commission ( TSC) to sit up to its statutory responsibilities in the interest of the education sector.

He also called on the state government to conduct independent investigation into the activities of MDAs to sanitize the system.

Earlier, Hon Daniel Ogazi, the Chairman of the Committee while presenting the report of the committee said that the committee found out that the syndicates collected between N50,000 and N100,000 to issue fake appointment letters to the applicants.

He told the House that the committee has invited the managements of the ministry of Education, Finance, Accountant General, the syndicates, one of the victims, Caroline Barde among others before the committee.

It could be recalled that on Aug. 16, 2021 Mr Anthony Ladan, a senior Accountant in the Salaries Bureau, admitted including the names of 38 teachers into the pay roll of the state government without the directive from the Commissioner of Finance and Director, Salaries. (Daily Independent)