The governor of Taraba State, Agbu Kefas, claims that Darius Dickson Ishaku left him with an empty treasury.
During the opening ceremony of the ongoing five-day professional development programme for Secretaries in Ministries, Departments, and Agencies in the state, he revealed this on Monday.
Governor Kefas expressed sadness about the situation and alleged that the previous administration significantly plundered the state’s treasury.
“Despite the empty coffers we met on the ground since taking office on May 29, 2023,” Governor Kefas remarked, speaking through the Head of Service, Suzy Jemima Nathan, “I have made sure that employee salaries are paid on time.”
He stated, “In addition to meeting our commitments to pay pensioners, we have also added those who had previously been off the payroll, allowing them to continue receiving their monthly pensions without interruption.” He claimed the administration has started to formulate plans to reach out to the retirees.
Kefas said the government will determine the true numbers of the state’s employees using biometric data and emphasised that his administration has put procedures in place to clean up the mess left by the previous administration.
“We will shortly do a full biometric data collection to determine the true size of the workforce, its strengths and limitations, and where to improve through further employment of our talented young men and women in a transparent manner.
The governor stated that the state government will continue to give employees’ advancement and wellbeing a high priority.
In her speech, which was delivered by the Permanent Secretary for Manpower Development and Training, Chiegi Benjamin Benjamin Joseph, the Head of Service gave equal weight to the governor and noted that, in contrast to previous administrations, the current one has ingrained discipline in the state’s civil service.
“We are establishing a paradigm shift culture in the Taraba State Civil Service, which aims to inspire the effective workforce and restore work ethics to elevate the service to an enviable level.” She stated:
“The onerous duty of carrying out governmental policies and initiatives that grant the people the benefits of democracy is borne by the Executive branch.
