The Jigawa State Government, through the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Special Duties, has dismissed and suspended several food contractors over alleged fraud and the supply of substandard food items to boarding schools across the state.
The action, according to the government, is aimed at restoring integrity and public confidence in the state’s school feeding programme following a series of complaints by concerned citizens over poor food quality and alleged inflation of student population figures in some schools.
Speaking with journalists on Thursday, the Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Special Duties, Auwalu Sankara, said the sanctions followed unannounced inspections carried out across boarding schools in Dutse Local Government Area to audit the implementation of the feeding programme.
The action follows a series of complaints and unannounced inspections across boarding schools in Dutse Local Government Area, aimed at auditing the integrity of the State School Feeding Programme, Sankara said.
He explained that the inspections were conducted to ensure that the welfare of students was not being compromised for personal or financial gain.
The inspections were meant to check the reality on the ground and ensure that our children are not being shortchanged, he added.
According to the commissioner, serious irregularities were uncovered during the exercise. At the Girls Model Boarding School, Kudai, Dutse metropolis, the monitoring team reportedly discovered a discrepancy of over 30 per cent between the number of students declared by the contractor and the actual headcount.
At Girls Model Boarding School, Kudai, we found only 681 students instead of the reported 1008, Sankara revealed.
He added that the soup served to students at the school was found to be unfit for human consumption, leading to the immediate suspension of the contractor, Jibrin Maifata.
Similarly, at Government Commercial Secondary School, Dutse, the monitoring team rejected a supply of low grade rice, resulting in the dismissal of Alhaji Sule Zai, who was also identified as the chairman of the contractors.
In another development, Sankara disclosed that three contractors Kamalu Sulaiman, Alhaji Abdullahi Abanderi and Alhaji Umaru Chamo were suspended for supplying incomplete food items to the School for Arabic and Islamic Studies, Dutse.
However, the commissioner noted a positive outcome at the School for the Visually Impaired, Limawa, where the student headcount was found to be accurate and food supplies satisfactory. As a result, the contractor, Adamu Khalid, was retained.
While we are cracking down on errant contractors, we also acknowledge and appreciate those who are doing their job honestly, Sankara said.
He stressed that the state government remains committed to Governor Danmodi’s 12 point agenda, warning that anyone found diverting resources meant for the nutrition and education of children would face the full weight of the law.
The commissioner further cautioned that the government would not tolerate any compromise on students’ welfare, assuring that all offenders would be dealt with decisively.
Efforts by journalists to obtain comments from the affected contractors and school heads were unsuccessful, as they declined to respond.
Meanwhile, stakeholders have commended the government’s action, describing it as a clear demonstration of its commitment to transparency and accountability.
They also called on the government to ensure that suspended contractors refund any funds received for services not rendered and that new contractors are promptly engaged to avoid disruption of the school feeding programme.
