The Abia State Government has dismissed six employees of the Ministry of Justice indicted in a salary padding scandal.
The decision was announced in a statement by the Chairman of the State Civil Service Commission, Dr.Eno Jerry-Eze, on Thursday and made available to journalists in Umuahia on Friday.
According to her, the fraud was uncovered during an internal audit and administrative inquiry, which revealed that the affected workers had unlawfully manipulated payroll systems to pay themselves beyond their entitlements.
Those dismissed are:
Dr. Jerry-Eze said another worker, Mrs. Chioma Madu, was exonerated after promptly reporting an overpayment and taking steps to correct it.
She added that the indicted staff would be handed over to law enforcement agencies for prosecution.
The Commission urged all civil servants to uphold integrity, noting that Governor Alex Otti had directed an investigation into the activities of some members of the State’s Salary Committee to ensure full accountability.
