Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, has alleged that his administration inherited a depleted treasury from the previous government, accusing his predecessor, former Governor Bello Matawalle, of leaving behind unaccounted funds totaling over ₦250 billion.
Speaking during an interview on Channels TV’s Politics Today on Monday, Lawal expressed dismay over the financial mismanagement under the former administration. According to him, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had initially flagged ₦70 billion as missing before he assumed office, but upon further review, he discovered the unaccounted sum was significantly higher.
“The EFCC had alleged around May 21, 2023, that ₦70 billion was stolen. But by the time I took over, I found out that this ₦70 billion was just the tip of the iceberg,” Lawal said. “The actual figure is over ₦250 billion. It’s quite shocking.”
He went on to describe the dire state of affairs he found upon assuming office, stating that the Zamfara State Government’s account held less than ₦4 million, with months of unpaid salaries and halted educational progress.
“There was a four-month backlog of unpaid salaries, and for three years, no indigene of Zamfara State had written either WAEC or NECO. We had to intervene, settling ₦1.3 billion for NECO and ₦1.6 billion for WAEC,” Lawal revealed. He added that some students only received their certificates after the payments were made.
The governor described the situation as evidence of a deeply dysfunctional state system under the previous administration, which he is now working to restore.
