Disturbed by the increasing number of ghost workers on its payroll, the Rivers State government has threatened to invite the Police and the State Security Service (SSS) to look into the records of all the ministries in the state.
State Governor, Mr. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, who disclosed this on Friday evening in Port Harcourt while speaking at a Christmas party he organised for civil servants in the state, promised that all those involved in the acts will not go free.
Amaechi said: “I will invite the Commissioner of Police, the Director General of the State Security Service to investigate all the Ministries one by one, and I will invite Accountants and Auditors to join them in the investigation so that we can fish out these stealing our money.”
The governor lamented that the state government had an overblown payroll with salaries going to people not in the civil service.
“Some 500 ghost names have come out; some workers who have retired are still earning salary, some workers who are dead are still earning salary; so I have set up a committee headed by Chief Sampson Agbaru, a former Secretary to the state government to fish out these criminals.
“And if it is only ghost names we can manage, but there are ghost salaries too. If you are of level 8; they pay you as if you are of level 16 and the salary that will go to your account will be level 8; and they will collect the remaining amount,” he said.
Amaechi, however assured the civil servants of prompt payment of their salaries once the audit is completed, saying; “I promise you that from the day we catch those stealing our money and take them off our system there will be no one day delay in the payment of your salaries.
“So I think and I believe that you deserve your salaries. If you serve us and serve us well, you should retire to your homes and rest well. We should not owe you because if we owe you, you will not be happy to serve us.”
In her welcome address, the state Head of the Service, Mrs. Esther Anucha said the day would remain memorable to all civil servants in the state being the first time the governor was hosting them to a Christmas party.
Anucha said; “Today history is being made in the public service of Rivers State as public servants are privileged to be treated to a Christmas Party initiated by our amiable governor.