Arising from the recent Public Service Staff Verification Exercise conducted by the Delta State Government, a total of 493 civil servants have been purged from its payroll.
Those affected by the compulsory retirement cuts across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) in the state service.
Findings by The Pointer revealed that 151 of the affected workers were retired for presenting fake documents, two absconded without justification, while 340 were dismissed outright for being overage.
The dirty laundry uncovered through the verification, spearheaded by the state screening committee, is extensive, revealing that a total of 133 civil servants were retired from the Post Primary Education Board (PPEB) alone.
According to further investigations by The Pointer, among the employees removed were scores found guilty of age falsification, others caught for certificate forgery, and still more implicated in additional misconduct.
At the time of filing this report, a copy of the retirement list was circulating among top government functionaries, labour leaders, and some workers’ WhatsApp platforms.
Recall that the Commissioner for Works (Rural Roads) and Public Information, Charles Aniagwu, had said the purge marked a decisive turn in the state’s drive to clean up its civil service.
“We are sanitising the service and restoring its integrity,” he declared.
He revealed cases of outrageous manipulation, such as individuals presenting primary school certificates that implied they began schooling right after birth.
Aniagwu had stressed that the government stood firmly behind the screening committee’s decisions and would pursue recovery of illegally drawn salaries from those who remained abroad while still on the government payroll.
The Commissioner had cautioned that the clampdown was ongoing, warning that the government would no longer tolerate age falsification and abuse of official leave.
He also emphasised the state’s commitment that if the committee recommends retirement, the government will back that recommendation fully. “If there is anybody that has been advised by the screening committee to retire, the government fully supports that decision,” he said.
