The Rivers State Government says it has arrested and arraigned three persons for allegedly forging staff identification cards in the ongoing verification of retirees.
The State Civil Service said the imposters had tried to infiltrate the ongoing verification of retirees for payment of their pensions as directed by the state governor, Nyesom Wike.
Recall that the governor had on May 1 approved the verification of retirees for payment of their pensions, gratuities, and death benefits of civil servants in the state.
The State Head of Service, Rufus Godwin, in a statement in Port Harcourt on Friday, announced that the civil service had discovered the existence of fraudsters who posed as retirees in the exercise.
He disclosed that one of the suspects, a civil servant, identified as Enoch conspired with two persons, Arthur and Akama, and others at large to commit the crime.
The statement read, “The attention of the Rivers State Government has been drawn to the existence of a syndicate of fraudsters who pose as pensioners with forged Rivers State Government Staff Identification Cards to infiltrate the ongoing verification of retirees for payment of their pensions, gratuities and death benefits as approved by Nyesom Wike. Governor of Rivers State.
“The criminal activities of these impostors came to the limelight on Thursday, 14 July 2022, at the venue of the verification exercise, when a serving civil servant, Enoch, in conspiracy with Arthur and Akama with others at large, forged the Rivers State Government Staff Identification Cards for the purpose of facilitating their fraudulent participation in the verification exercise with the intent to defraud Government of retirees’ pensions, gratuities, and death benefits.
“The above-named suspects were promptly arrested.”
Godwin said the suspects had been arraigned before a Magistrate Court in Port Harcourt, the state capital for sundry criminal offences, adding that “the fleeing accomplices, at large, are still under the searchlight of the Police, and who would be similarly brought to book when arrested.”
He, however, assured all legitimate retirees of the government’s preparedness to continue with the scheduled verification and payment exercise without any hindrance or disruption by impersonators.
The Head of Service said that plans were in place to fish out ‘for prosecution’, any person with an intent of sabotaging the exercise.
