Dauda Lawal, Zamfara state governor
Ibrahim Dosara, former commissioner for information in Zamfara, has refuted claims by Dauda Lawal, governor of the state, that he met only N4 million in the government coffers.
On April 14, Lawal said in an interview with Arise TV that he met a dysfunctional state when he took over the mantle of leadership from Bello Matawalle, his predecessor and the incumbent minister of state for defense.
The governor also said he found N4 million in the state’s treasury and N16.5 billion in unpaid pension arrears since 2011.
Speaking on Monday during a media briefing, Dosara described the claims as a “blatant lie”.
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“We are compelled by the circumstances of the above subject matter, in which our government, under the leadership of His Excellency, former governor of Zamfara state Hon. Bello Mohammed Matawalle, was erroneously but intentionally accused of wrongdoings while in office by the current governor, Dr. Dauda Lawal, when he granted an interview to Arise TV news during its Monday, 14th April 2025, morning show,” Dosara said.
“This is a blatant lie. For the avoidance of doubt, the former governor left the following in the government treasury on the day he handed over power to the current Gov. Dr. Dauda Lawal: N14 billion bond proceeds, N2.6 billion accruals from World Bank funds, N6.3 billion UBE grants, and N2.7 billion NG Cares World Bank funds investment, which yielded N42 billion for the government of Lawal.”
He added that the former governor left only three months of salary backlog due to the insufficient cash allocation to the state.
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“I don’t know if we have a half-month salary in the civil service scheme,” he said.
“For the record, the government left a backlog of three months salaries because even before taking over power as the governor of the state, Dauda Lawal threatened all banks having arrangements for financial dealings with the outgoing government.”
