Bayelsa wage fraud: unemployed graduates back probe

Over 1,000 unemployed graduates in Bayelsa State on Thursday threw their weight behind the decision of the State Governor, Henry. Seriake Dickson ‎to prosecute over 6,000 alleged wage fraudsters in the State.

The group of graduates, under the aegis of the Bayelsa State Graduate Forum (BSGF),  led by Eddy Soko, declared that they support the effort of the State Government to sanitize the Civil Service system of the State.

Soko, who led members of BSGF, during a media briefing in Yenagoa, stated that the support declared is based on the fact that the state have suffered unduly from perpetrator of payroll fraud and other sundry misdemeanour in the civil service‎.

He said, ” How can people who are working in some federal institutions receiving salaries there and also drawing salaries every month from the State Civil Service. Or how do we continue to keep quiet when people who have officially attained the retirement age but have refused to leave, rather they swear in affidavit and change their date of births.

“This is clearly unfair to us as unemployed graduates and to the state in general .So also it has become imperative for us to lend our support to the government‎, because if the civil service is sanitize, there will be space for the teeming unemployed Bayelsa youths, particularly graduates like us to get employed.

“We are pained that some persons are kicking against the noble move by the government especially the National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE).Let us inform them that we resist any attempt by them to shut down the state through needless protests. They should be ready to face us because we are talking about our future here.”

The concerned undergraduates also declared that the records available to them showed that over N2billion have been saved by the State Government during the ongoing Verification exercise.

Soko said, Therefore we are today declaring anyone or group who stands against the sincere intention of the State Government as an enemy‎ of the state and we shall treat such persons. We will name and shame them. We will go the legitimate means to fish those people.

“We are saying NO to payroll fraud. NO fraud. NO to Ghost Workers. No to Birth Certificate Forgery. No to keeping of jobs for unborn children, concubines and certificate fraud just to remain in the Civil Service there by hindering qualified graduate in the state not to be employed.