The Sokoto State Government has explained the recent salary deductions for some of its employees in the state civil service, stating that the deductions are for loan repayment by the affected employees.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance in the State, Abba Muhammed Mualledi, said on Wednesday that the deductions were necessitated by unpaid loans taken by the affected workers from various financial institutions.
“The affected staff members in the state civil service had collected loans from more than one financial house during the previous administration in the state,” Mualledi said.
“The affected financial house, upon my assumption of office as the permanent secretary in the ministry of finance, wrote a letter demanding a refund of their loans from defaulters.”
According to Mualledi, investigations revealed that the deductions made from the salaries of the affected staff members in the previous administration were not remitted to the affected financial institutions.
He added that this oversight led to the current situation where the affected staff members are facing deductions to clear their outstanding loans.
The permanent secretary also stated that the ministry is addressing the issue and ensuring that the loan repayment process is transparent and fair, noting that meetings with the salary department are being held to resolve any anomalies and regulate loan disbursements.
“I met with the salary department to discuss how to tackle all these anomalies, and the committee will sit with the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress and the affected financial houses in the state.”
The ministry is collaborating with all financial institutions in the state to harmonise loan records in order to regulate loan acquisition by state civil servants, according to Muledi.
