The Jigawa State Government has suspended contractors handling the state’s school feeding programme following allegations of fraud and poor service delivery.
The Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Special Duties, Hon. Auwal D. Sankara, made this known on Wednesday during an inspection tour of selected schools in Dutse Local Government Area.
He explained that the inspection was part of the Jigawa government’s commitment to transparency, accountability, and the protection of students’ welfare.
According to him, the monitoring team uncovered several irregularities, including inflated student enrollment figures, the supply of substandard food items, and incomplete delivery of meals to boarding schools.
“At the Girls Model Boarding School, Kudai, inspectors found a major discrepancy between official records and the actual number of students. While school records indicated a population of 1,008 students, a physical head count showed only 681.”
The commissioner noted that, the food is not safe for students consumption, leading to the immediate suspension of the contractor, Jibrin Maifata.
At the Government Commercial Secondary School, Dutse, a consignment of rice supplied to the school was rejected for failing to meet required standards. The Commissioner subsequently dismissed the Chairman of the School Feeding Contractors, Alhaji Sule Zai, over the incident.
Similarly, three contractors, Kamalu Sulaiman, Alhaji Abdullahi Abanderi, and Alhaji Umaru Chamo were suspended at the School for Arabic and Islamic Studies, Dutse, for delivering incomplete food supplies to students.
Hon. Sankara said the actions were in line with Jigawa Governor Umar A. Namadi’s 12-Point Agenda and the administration’s commitment to transparency and accountability in public programmes.
He warned that any individual found diverting resources meant for students’ feeding and welfare would be prosecuted.
He said the inspections would continue across the Jigawa state to ensure value for public funds and adherence to standards in all social intervention programmes.
