Group accuses Gassol Council chairman of employment racketeering, arbitrary sales of market shops

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By Abdullahi Yar’Adua, Jalingo

A group, Gassol Development Frontier, has called on Taraba State Governor, Dr. Agbu Kefas to investigate allegations of employment racketeering and arbitrary sales of market shops against the Chairman of Gassol Local Government Area, Hon. Abubakar Saidu.

In a six page petition addressed to the Governor and signed by Hamman Gidado and Abubakar Zelani, Chairman and Secretary of the group respectively, they accused the Chairman of selling employment slots to over 500 persons amounting to millions of Naira since his assumption of office.

According to the petitioners, the Chairman of the council is using his cronies, including one Buhari Muhammed, his closest associate to sell employments letters into the local government.

The petition alleged that the employment letters were sold between N350,000 and N500,000 per slot while over 50 persons from Gassol town were removed from the pay roll and their salaries allegedly diverted by the Chairman.

It was also alleged that while some of the job seekers got their employment letters, others couldn’t get theirs after paying between N350,000 and N500,000.

The petitioners revealed that the said Buhari Muhammed, fronting for the Chairman allegedly collected the sum of N700,000 from one Abbas Gashika in Jalingo to secure two employment letters for his Sisters at N350,000 each but failed to provide the employment letters after five months.

It was further alleged that Buhari’s failure to deliver the appointment letters compelled Abbas to report the matter to the Jalingo Police Division who later forced Buhari to pay back the N700,000 to Abbas.

The petitioners also alleged that there were many cases of several other persons who were duped by the syndicates who are allies to the council chairman but were afraid of approaching the police or other security agencies.

It was alleged in the petition that the Chairman often connived with some officials at the Bureau for local government and Chieftaincy Affairs to issue employment letters to replace those that have either retired, dead or resigned from service for another job.

Furthermore, the petitioners accused the chairman of unilaterally selling 142 shops inside Mararaba Gassol grain market worth thousands of Naira and diverted the money to his pocket.

It was alleged that the chairman allocated the shops at the cost of N250,000 without taking consideration of the leadership of Mararaba Gassol market.

Aside from the case at the Mararaba Gassol, the petitioners also alleged that the Chairman sold about 500 shops at Dananacha Yam market at the sum of N120,000 each and diverted the proceeds to personal use.

The petitioners urged Gov. Kefas to urgently set up a committee to investigate all allegations of maladministration and corruption levelled against the Chairman, Hon. Abubakar Saidu and if found guilty he should be removed from office and prosecuted.

When contacted, the Chairman denied the allegations and described the petition as the handiwork of his political enemies.

He said that the local government did not recruit any staff or collect money to issue employment letters to anyone.

The Chairman further denied using Buhari Muhammed to collect money from anyone. ” The local government is not aware of the 50 names said to have been removed from the pay roll,” he said.

Hon. Saidu further denied selling shops at the Mararaban Gassol grain market and Dananacha Yam Market.