The Adamawa State Pension Board says the state government expends #13.6million every month on the alleged 881 ghost pensioners.
According to the board, it has successfully screened 1,231 out 2,243 pensioners at the zonal level, saying that the remaining 881 failed to show up for the exercise, insisting that the state government expends the sum #13.6million on them.
It could be recalled that the Chairman House Standing Committee on Public Service and Electoral Matters and Member representing Guyuk constituency at the Adamawa State House of Assembly, Hon. Adwawa Donglock had told newsmen that the committee uncovered over 800 ghost pensioners on the state payroll.
The Permanent Secretary of the State Pension Board, Joab Sahma, who made the disclosure in an exclusive interview with NEWS PLATFORM said that the government spends the above amount on the 881 affected pensioners.
He said that in all, the board is expected to screen over 11,000 pensioners in the state, saying that so far, they exercise is going on successfully and pensioners are turning out for exercise.
He said that the verification exercise is not meant to witchunt anybody rather it is for the betterment of the pensioners, saying that it is the data they want to generate which government can use to control its expenditure.
According to him, for now there is no certainty as to how much the pensioners are on the payroll of the state government, but the board is expecting over 11,000 pensioners for the verification exercise.
He stated that one of the 11 point agenda of Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri led administration is to ensure that pension administration in the state is transparent so as to address the challenges being encountered by both the board and the pensioners.
He explained that the Governor directed them to carryout the exercise in order to ascertain the number of those on the payroll so as to enable government control expenditure.
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