The Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal has revealed that former Governor Bello Matawalle left just N4 million in the government treasury with huge substantial debts carried over by the former governor’s administration.
Lawal revealed that the state, on his resumption to office, was effectively insolvent and plagued by unpaid salaries stretching over four months.
The governor further disclosed that Zamfara owed N1.6 billion each to the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the state judiciary, alongside a N4 billion debt to the National Examinations Council (NECO).
Speaking during an interview on a Television station, Lawal said he was confronted with a collapsed system, especially in the security, education, and health sectors forcing him to declare a state of emergency in those areas shortly after taking charge.
He said: “There was almost nothing in the treasury,” the governor stated. “I inherited a state grappling with salary backlogs and a mountain of financial obligations. Addressing workers’ welfare became my priority.”
To that end, Lawal said he cleared the unpaid salaries, raised the minimum wage to N70,000, and also paid off N16.5 billion in pension arrears, a move he said brought relief to many struggling workers.
