On Wednesday, November 1, 2023, many online papers and blogs published an article captioned ‘Sokoto SUBEB In The Web of Bogus Contracts, Stealing Workers Salaries, Politics and Corruption’ and many other tissue of lies trying to paint Sokoto SUBEB black but in the process both the writer and his sponsors ridiculed themselves.
It is, therefore, pertinent to put the issues in the right perspective and correct the erroneous and harmful impressions that have been created in the minds of the unsuspecting public that there is “massive fraud, illegal contracts, corruption or stealing of workers salaries in SUBEB Sokoto and misappropriation of public funds”
To begin with the foundation of the true contents of the matter before laying the blocks, let it be clearly understood by everyone that since the appointment of the new director of finance and other appointments in the board of SUBEB Sokoto by His Excellency Dr. Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto, not a single contract has been awarded and therefore where does the issue of bogus contracts come from? For the records, SUBEB always has a board which sits and deliberates on contracts and what projects to be executed and the government is yet to appoint a chairman and a secretary respectively for the board, so nobody can award contracts without the approval of the board.
Before the new administration of Governor Ahmed Aliyu came in workers in Sokoto including staff of SUBEB especially teachers were the most neglected by the Tambuwal administration when you talk of delay in payment of salaries but between June and September 2023 no single staff or teacher has complained of non payment or delay in payment.
Is this not a plus for the present administration? Withholding of any worker’s salary is now history in Sokoto state. There can never be irregularities where there is no board to approve contracts and since there is no board, how can the director of finance single handedly be the Alpha and Omega?
In fact, the newly appointed director of finance of the board is a professional accountant and a gentleman to the core who for decades has a record of financial honestly, accountability in all ramifications, dedication to service with good faith and a personality that has gotten all the respect in services for being truthful in accounting public funds. He would therefore not engage in anything that is not professional because he has a name to protect.
Secondly, those evil elements that sponsored the piece in their determined mindset to create a false impression and report unfairly, they ended up on reporting abnormal figures that can’t be found anywhere in the records of SUBEB Sokoto. Those who sponsored the write up did so as a mere campaign of calumny and they have failed already.
Where on earth did Sokoto SUBEB generate such billions of naira in just three months and spent the same amount in the same three months? I’m very sure, the sponsors of those lies and propaganda did so just to create panic in SUBEB but they would not succeed. Without any doubt, the lies in that sponsored write up were merely to discredit the personality of the director of finance who is now overseeing the affairs of the board but as a professional, he would not allow empty heads to distract him from the good job he has been doing.
Thirdly, not a single corruption scam had ever trailed the Sokoto state SUBEB in the month of September 2023 and not only in September but till date, since the assumption of office by the hardworking director finance, SUBEB.
It is the same new officers of the Sokoto SUBEB appointed by His Excellency Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto that uncovered the alarming number of alleged ghost workers from the payroll by the immediate-past administration of Aminu Tambuwal and its officials. The issue of non payment of salaries became history ever since the new appointees took over from the SUBEB Sokoto.
Fourthly, those behind the sponsored piece failed to add on their lies the whereabout of the BESDA final grants to the state, because they are well aware that the state government and the officials of the board are making history in managing the public funds through accountability for every single kobo. Ahmed Aliyu’s administration is a government of accountability for accountability and by accountability.
For the avoidance of doubt, the new administration in Sokoto SUBEB is doing its possible best to make sure all the irregularities inherited by the immediate past administration have been rectified.
His Excellency Governor Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto could only direct the State Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice to work with appropriate anti-corruption agencies to promptly probe those SUBEB between May 2015 and May 2023. However, the officials who are allegedly behind the previous underground carpet stealing are still under investigation by the ICPC and God willing their names would be made public after investigations and the outcome of the investigation and to also prosecute them as well as fully recover any missing public funds.
From the explanation stated here, it is obvious that the issues raised in the sponsored publication in order to tarnish the image of the finance officer of the board and Sokoto state government in general are just concoction lies from the liars of the century and, finally, some of the other claims in the story are too pedestrian to deserve any response from serious minded people.
Naseer writee from Sokoto.