By Aga Samuel Imoter
The Taraba State Government has approved the recruitment of new civil servants following the removal of thousands of unverified names from the state payroll after a verification exercise.The Commissioner for Information, Barrister Zainab Ibrahim, disclosed this during a briefing on resolutions reached at the State Executive Council meeting held on May 27, 2026, at the TY Danjuma House in Jalingo.
The meeting was chaired by Governor Agbu Kefas.Speaking on the exercise, the Head of Civil Service, Dr. Hamidu Ahmed Kara, said the screening committee discovered that more than 7,000 workers were allegedly recruited outside approved civil service procedures, prompting a comprehensive verification process.
According to him, despite public announcements and notifications, only 3,187 workers appeared for the screening exercise, while those who failed to present themselves were removed from the payroll.
Dr. Kara said the governor had approved a fresh recruitment exercise to absorb qualified applicants into the state civil service. He added that affected individuals would not receive salary arrears because their appointments were not officially recognised.
He further disclosed that 1,800 additional workers would be recruited to ensure balanced manpower distribution across the 16 local government areas of the state.The Head of Service said details of the recruitment process would soon be published in national newspapers, noting that applicants would undergo screening and selection based on merit.
He also commended the state government for implementing worker welfare policies, including payment of gratuities, implementation of the new minimum wage, and civil service training programmes.
