By Yunusa Isa, Gombe
Several Gombe State civil servants who bank with Access-Diamond Bank have appealed to the state government for urgent intervention following the non-payment of their December salaries. This is despite the state government’s early disbursement of funds prior to the Christmas holiday.
Speaking to journalists, affected workers expressed frustration, noting that while they have faced recurring payment issues with the bank, the December delay has been particularly severe, leaving hundreds of employees without their dues.
One of the affected workers, Hauwa Adamu, a widow working with the State Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, shared her ordeal. She explained that she had been consoling her children with promises of Christmas shopping, expecting her salary to drop at any moment. As of Tuesday, December 30, she is still expecting.
“As the breadwinner of my family, I rely solely on this salary to provide for them,” Hauwa emotionally stated, making a passionate plea to relevant authorities to proffer lasting solutions.
Other civil servants, including Saminu Bulus and Zara Mustapha from Ministry of Health, Sa’idu Ibrahim and Faisal Isa Waziri from the State’s Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, echoed these concerns. They noted that the technical hitches with Access-Diamond Bank have become a long-standing issue.
The workers lamented that many celebrated Christmas without even a “mudu” of rice at home. They described being caught in a bureaucratic “limbo” when they approached the State Treasury House, they were told the issue lay with the bank. Conversely, bank officials informed them that the problem originated from the Treasury House.
“We had no option but to approach the media to appeal to the authorities to wade into this issue for a lasting solution,” the group stated. They added that due to the recurring nature of the glitches, many civil servants are now making plans to migrate their salary accounts to other financial institutions.
Efforts to reach both parties for clarification were unsuccessful:
The Bank: When journalists visited the bank for comment, the manager was reportedly unavailable. The next senior officer on duty stated he was not authorized to brief the press.
The Government: The Director of Treasury at the Gombe State Treasury House, Hajiya Lami Muhammad Kwami, was also not in the office when correspondents visited to obtain the government’s perspective.
While the Gombe State government is generally recognized for timely salary payments, hundreds of workers banking with Access-Diamond Bank continue to face significant hardships due to these persistent monthly glitches.