Governor Matawalle of Zamfara state has disclosed that former Governor Abdulaziz Yari paid himself N300 million severances just before he left Zamfara government house. Matawalle made this revelation on Wednesday while assenting to the new law proscribing jumbo pay as pension to former governors, deputy governors, speakers and their deputies which run into billions Naira annually.
The governor expressed shock that his predecessor and his cabinet were insensitive to the economic realities of the state before they hurriedly passed the selfish law just before leaving the office.
Matawalle revealed that his administration would only consider allowances as stipulated by the Revenue Mobilization and Fiscal Commission.
According to Matawalle, he was shocked to marrow when he received a letter from the former governor demanding an outrageous pay as pension when the state is struggling to pay worker salaries and pension. Yari even went to extent of threatening his administration with the court case.
Subsequently, himself, his deputy and the speaker went into a closed-door meeting where they resolved they were not interested in such extortion after retirement out of share patriotism for the state, the governor added.
Matawalle explained that it is the same Yari administration that has left a liability of Primary Teachers salaries, pension and local government workers to the tune of ten N 10 billion to the state not to mention the liabilities of promotions and annual increment where he revealed the state is in dare need of how it will meet up with such liabilities.
He disclosed that the state government cannot foot the liabilities of paying 120 million annually, a car and a house for a governor that refused to pay workers salary.
“If allowed thus, it will overstretch the meagre resources of the state at a time when the same people who were supposed to pay stipends as pensions to retired civil servants refused to do so and chose to hand them over as liabilities to the present administration,” Mutawalle said.
