Iliyasu Abdullahi Bah
The Taraba State workforce is on the verge of an indefinite strike following the controversial omission of over 7,000 civil servants from the state payroll after a recently concluded biometric verification exercise. The move, initially designed to cleanse the system of ghost workers, has instead driven thousands of legitimate workers, including some with 20–30 years of service, into financial distress since May 2025.
In May 2025, the Taraba State government conducted a statewide biometric verification exercise aimed at eliminating ghost workers and streamlining the civil service payroll. However, the implementation has been marred by errors, with thousands of verified employees cut off from their salaries.
In an interview with The Journal Nigeria, Jalingo resident Bello Mohammed, one of the affected workers, revealed, “The government carried out the biometric exercise, but the outcome has been disastrous. Over 7,000 workers, including career civil servants with decades of service and all necessary documents, were unjustly removed from the payroll.”
Mohammed said that the crisis has persisted for months, with affected workers unpaid since May. Despite assurances from the Head of Civil Service attributing the delays to “network glitches,” no concrete steps have been taken to rectify the situation.
“When May salaries were withheld, we were told it was a temporary issue,” Bello explained. “But now it is August, and there has been no official response from the governor’s office. Many of us have families to feed, children in school, and medical bills to pay. How does the government expect us to survive?”
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) in Taraba have condemned the government’s handling of the situation. The unions have issued a stern warning, threatening that an indefinite industrial action will commence on the 11th of August if the state fails to immediately reinstate the omitted workers and settle all outstanding salaries.
“We cannot accept a situation where hardworking civil servants are labeled ghost workers without due verification,” said the NLC Chairman, Peter Jedie. “The government must correct this injustice or face a total shutdown of the civil service.”
Affected employees argue that the biometric process was unsound, with many fully documented staff wrongfully excluded. Some long-serving workers, now struggling to make ends meet, have expressed frustration over the lack of accountability.
“I served this state for 25 years with all my certificates intact,” lamented a senior civil servant who claimed anonymity. “Now, I am suddenly a ghost? This is unacceptable.”
As tensions escalate, pressure mounts on the Taraba State government to immediately reinstate all wrongly omitted workers, pay all withheld salaries from May to August, conduct a transparent review of the biometric data, and provide clear communication on steps to resolve the crisis.
With the NLC and TUC mobilizing for action, the state faces an imminent paralysis of its workforce unless urgent measures are taken. The situation underscores the need for careful implementation of civil service reforms to avoid harming legitimate employees while targeting actual ghost workers.
The NLC and TUC reiterate in their stern warning that if the government fails to act before the union’s deadline, Taraba could witness its largest strike in years—a move that would cripple government operations and deepen the plight of thousands of families already struggling due to unpaid wages.