The Kano State Government has inaugurated a 12-member committee to investigate and recover more than ₦1.8 billion allegedly deducted from the salaries of civil servants by private loan vendors.
The committee was inaugurated in Kano by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mr. Umar Faruq-Ibrahim, following complaints by workers over unauthorised salary deductions recorded in February 2025.
Speaking during the inauguration at his office, Faruq-Ibrahim said the committee was established to ensure that the deducted funds are recovered and refunded to the affected workers. He explained that the intervention followed an independent audit ordered by the state government after several civil servants reported suspicious deductions from their salaries under the guise of loan repayments.
According to the SSG, the government received multiple complaints from workers alleging that deductions were being made from their salaries in the name of loans they either did not authorise or considered irregular.
“Upon receiving the complaints, the cabinet presented a memo before the State Executive Council, which was graciously approved,” he said.
Faruq-Ibrahim stated that the government subsequently engaged an independent audit firm to investigate the allegations, with the findings later presented to the State Executive Council.
He said the audit report uncovered arbitrary deductions from workers’ salaries by private loan vendors. The report also revealed that some vendors approved multiple loans for workers beyond the statutory one-third salary deduction threshold permitted under public service regulations.
“The report also indicated that the vendors engaged in multiplicity grant of loans against the one-third per cent approved for deduction, among other findings,” the SSG said.
He added that, following the submission of the report, the State Executive Council directed the constitution of a committee to recover the illegal deductions and ensure that affected employees receive appropriate refunds.
Faruq-Ibrahim also clarified earlier allegations involving the former Head of Service, Mr. Abdullahi Musa, stressing that the ₦1.8 billion in question was deducted by private loan vendors and not by the former official.
The committee is chaired by the Commissioner for Finance, Dr. Ismaila Aliyu-Danmaraya, while the Permanent Secretary, Establishment, Mr. Salisu Mustapha, will serve as Secretary.
Other members of the committee include the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Abdulkarim Kabiru-Maude (SAN), the Head of Civil Service, Mrs. Bilkisu Maimota, the Accountant-General, and the chairmen of the State Standing Committee and Local Governments Standing Committee, among others.
