NASWAMSA Refutes Alleged N5,000 Salary Claims, Affirms No Casual Worker Earns Below N15,000 Monthly — Denies Ownership of Waste Management Workers

By David Odama

The management of the Nasarawa State Sanitation and Waste Management Authority (NASWAMSA) has debunked allegations circulating on social media that casual workers under the agency are being paid as low as ₦5,000 and are owed salaries.

In a statement made available to City Post in Lafia on Thursday, NASWAMSA described the claims as false, baseless, and a calculated attempt to discredit the leadership of Hon. Isa Bello.

The statement alleged that some disgruntled individuals, using one Ibrahim Abdul, were behind the campaign of misinformation against the agency.

“It has become necessary to clear the air over the recent unfounded allegations by certain casual staff of NASWAMSA who have resorted to blackmail and fabricating unsubstantiated claims, using one Ibrahim Abdul to spread fake news against the Honourable Isa Bello-led management,” the statement read.

“It is a known fact that in Nasarawa State, no casual staff, whether under local or state government, earns less than Fifteen Thousand Naira (₦15,000) monthly. The publication alleging that ₦5,000 is being paid to casual staff is purely an act of blackmail targeted at Hon. Isa Bello, whose less than one-year tenure has brought remarkable transformation to NASWAMSA.”

The statement further clarified that the ₦5,000 referenced in the allegation was a token given to individuals participating in the monthly environmental sanitation exercise, not the salary of NASWAMSA staff. It dismissed claims that ₦2,000 was being deducted from workers’ salaries as false.

Under Hon. Bello’s leadership, NASWAMSA has reportedly refurbished its trucks and constructed a befitting operational office at its Karu headquarters. The management added that the agency has evolved into a revenue-generating institution through innovative initiatives that have attracted partnerships with multinational companies and the federal government.

“NASWAMSA under Hon. Bello continues to uphold prudence and transparency in public resource management. The leadership has streamlined its workforce to ensure only committed staff are retained, unlike in the past when individuals relied on godfathers without offering real services,” the statement added.

The agency emphasized that some dismissed workers were involved in double employment schemes, earning salaries from two government sources with the support of an official in the Ministry of Environment.

Speaking with City Post, the Director General of NASWAMSA, Hon. Isa Bello, revealed that further disciplinary actions would follow once the compilation of names of those involved in the illegal recruitment and double payment scheme is completed.

“More heads will roll as soon as we conclude investigations and identify everyone connected to the fraudulent recruitment process,” Bello said.