By Garba Mohammad
A new scandal is rocking Adamawa State as facts have emerged that the Yola branch a bank (name withheld ) in connivance two principal staff of e-payment unit of the Accountant General’s Office; and three other account staff of the state Post Primary Schools Management Board have defrauded the state of over N306 million by allegedly using 920 ghost workers and 61 non-existing schools.
Sources revealed that the fraud was orchestrated by inserting names of some dead workers and pensioners , and those on secondment and civil servants holding political offices.
It was reliably learnt that a whopping sum of 256,905,924.05 was discovered to have been embezzled through dubious means,while another N50m suspected to be linked to the 61 non-existing school was also uncovered.
Similarly, the syndicate was said to be operating salary accounts for 61 non-existing schools fully equipped with staff of different levels.
Also, the suspects were alleged to have formed the habits of posting double salaries to some workers in their banks salary accounts through the bank which is the custodian of the state government fund.These deposits are promptly mopped up and siphoned into private pockets,sources said.
Confirming the development,the state Head of Service (HOS), Mr Musa Kaibo, told newsmen in an interview in Yola that some others discovered to be still enjoying their salaries included those who withdrew their services from the state government and those on secondment.
Kaibo said the discovery was made at the Adamawa state Post Primary School Management Board (PPSMB) following investigation by a committee probing the problem of non payment of some newly recruited teachers in the board.
He said four staff comprising two from e-payment office of the Accountant General and two from the PPSMB had been suspending for their alleged involvement in the suspected fraud.
“Government is shocked by this discovery at the board and had to mandate the committee to expand it probe to other ministries and departments”, Kaibo said.
Also confirming the development, the state Commissioner for Finance, Alhaji Ibrahim Buba Vokna, confirmed the development saying the account of the 181 people involved in Board had been blocked saving N8.8 million in March salary of the PPMB.
He expressed that the since the establishment of E-payment Unit,five years ago,it has not been audited which according to him, was responsible for the leakages.
