Yari misappropriated N251bn, says committee led by his ex-deputy

A transition committee set up by Bello Matawalle, governor of Zamfara, has alleged that the immediate past governor of the state, Abdulaziz Yari, misappropriated N251,951,849,482.

Ibrahim Wakkala, immediate past deputy governor of the state, is the chairman of the committee.

“My committee while trying to ascertain the liabilities left behind by the immediate past administration of Hon. Abdulaziz Yari collected and went through the report submitted by a transition committee earlier set up by former Gov. Yari,” he told journalists on Monday.

“We discovered from Yari’s committee that the sum of over N250 billion cannot be accounted for.

“This included liabilities from a total of 462 ongoing projects which stands at N151, 190,477,572.02 and unremitted National Housing Fund (NHF) and unpaid workers’ gratuity of N1, 431,645,305.99.

“Similarly, the state government is indebted to various examination bodies including NECO and WAEC and some higher institutions amounting to over N2. 8 billion.”

He said that the outgone administration which released the sum of N2 billion for the payment of gratuity to retired workers only paid N400 million to retired permanent secretaries, while the remaining balance of N1. 6 billion had remained unaccounted.

Ibrahim Dosara, Yari’s special adviser, described the allegations as “baseless and do not hold water”.

Dosara who spoke to NAN on phone from Saudi Arabia, said, “please wait for my return very soon, I will come and give you the correct version of what is on ground.”