Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi state has vowed that his administration would not relent in the fight against ghost workers in order to salvage the economy of the state.
The governor made the pledge Wednesday evening when the newly elected executives of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Bauchi state council paid him a courtesy visit at the government house Bauchi.
He alleged that some corrupt principal civil servants during the past administrations had put too many ghost workers on the government payroll thereby making salaries to skyrocket such that they engulf most of the federal allocations received by the state.
The governor who noted that government has embarked on the verification of civil servants to fish out the ghost workers assured that all genuine civil servants would continue to get their salaries as and when due.
He therefore sought the support of journalists in the ongoing fight against ghost workers and corruption in the state by educating the citizens on the motive behind the ongoing verification exercise.
This is just as he promised that those involved in the fraud would be prosecuted to serve as deterrence to others.
He said the state government has already established a portal for workers who feel that they are cheated or maltreated in the ongoing verification exercise to enable them advance their complaints.