PRESS STATEMENT

THE COLLOSAL INDEBTEDNESS EX. GOV. YARI LEFT TO ZAMFARA STATE

The immediate past administration of ex. governor Abdulaziz Yari Abubakar has left behind a startling sum of N251, 951,849,482.50 as liability to the new administration of Gov. Mohammed Bello Matawallen-Maradun in Zamfara state.

This disturbing position was made known by Chairman Transition Committee ,Mallam Ibrahim Wakkala Muhammad while addressing Journalists at the transition committee Secretariat, Government House, Gusau,

The Chairman said
the Transition Committee was earlier set up by the present administration to verify the level of indebtedness of the state as of the time it took over the helm of affairs in the state.

The report included extractions from an earlier version of the report a transition committee of the immediate past government.

LIABILITIES FROM ONGOING PROJECTS:

The total liability drawn from ongoing projects as submitted by the last administration itself under economic, environmental, general administration and social sectors stands at the sum of N151, 190,477,572.02 (One Hundred and Fifty-One Billion, One Hundred and Ninety Million, Four Hundred and Seventy-Seven Thousand, Five Hundred and Seventy-Two Naira, Two Kobo).

LIABILITIES FROM MINISTRY OF FINANCE:

This includes outstanding loans, contact retention, bailouts and bank loans which left a burden of N65, 361,873,755.75 (Sixty-Five Billion, Three Hundred and Sixty-One Million, Eight Hundred and Seventy-Three Thousand, Seven Hundred and Fifty-Five Naira, Seventy-Five Kobo).

LIABILITIES FROM THE MINISTRY FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND CHIEFTAINCY AFFAIRS:

Under this ministry which may have served as one of soft conduits to siphon public funds, the sum of N35, 399,498,154.53 (Thirty-Five Billion, Three Hundred and Ninety-Nine Million, Four Hundred and Ninety-Eight Thousand, One Hundred and Fifty-Four Naira, Fifty-Three Kobo) has remained unexplained.

For deductions towards National Housing Fund (NHF) scheme contributions to enable the state's civil servants own and comfortably retire in their personal houses as well as Contributory Pensions Scheme deductible from workers salaries, non remittance of these funds amounted to the sum of N1, 431,645,305.99 (One Billion, Four Hundred and Thirty-One Million, Six Hundred and Forty-Five Thousand, Three Hundred and Five Naira, Ninety-Nine Kobo) even as the amount was deducted from the workers' salaries between 2016 and 2019 as the money have not been remitted to the respective organizations.

LIABILITIES FROM THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION:

As one of the major sectors providing social services in the state especially in the provision of educationally sound and crime free society, this sector has suffered from the deprivation of an unexplained sum of N2, 812,172,155 (Two Billion, Eight Hundred and Twelve Million, One Hundred and Seventy-Two Thousand One Hundred and Fifty-Five Naira which had denied several indigent secondary school leavers from furthering their education over the years as they could not collect their results due to the government's failure to settle the bills as promised.

Although the past government claimed to have settled outstanding gratuity to retired civil servants following the approval of the sum of N2, 000,000,000 (Two Billion Naira) by the ex-governor, the committee discovered that only retired Permanent Secretaries benefited and that only about N400, 000,000 (Four Hundred Million) was utilized while the remaining N1. 6 billion (One Billion, Six Hundred Million) is still unaccounted for.

These are, but some of the revelations and discoveries made by the Transition Committee set up by the Executive Governor of the state, Alhaji (Dr.) Bello Mohammed Matawallen-Maradun and chaired by the immediate past Deputy-governor of the state, Mallam Ibrahim Muhammad Wakkala

YUSUF IDRIS G
Director General Press Affairs, Government House,Gusau.

.... Speechless.