Malam Nuhu Zaki, the state Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, made the disclosure at a news conference in Bauchi on Thursday.

Zaki said the suspension was due to alleged sharp practices uncovered during a recent verification exercise carried out within the local education authorities across the state.

According to him, 876 primary school teachers retired from service between April 2009 and April 2020 yet the monthly wage bill of the 20 Local Education Athourities (LEAs) had kept increasing.

The commissioner said there was no justification for such wage increase.

He said when a verification committee detected the anomalies and discrepancies, the education secretaries told the committee that they had converted the salaries of the retired teachers to running costs.

“This was a clear case of financial crime and it must be investigated,” he said.

He said that investigation was still ongoing and justice and fairness would be ensured as those found guilty would definitely be sanctioned.

`We will spare no one found to be in conflict with the law,” the commissioner said.

He described as “selfish and misguided,” the recent allegation made by the state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC )that he was instrumental to the unjust suspension of the education secretaries.

He said the suspension and subsequent investigation of the education secretaries was not an individual decision.

“I and the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) acted on the directive from the governor”.

He restated the commitment of the state government to a robust, mature and clear industrial harmony between government and labour, saying “we are partners in progress.”

Zaki said all local government and LEA personnel received their salaries as and when due, except those with irregularities in their records.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Bauchi chapter of the NLC recently blamed the commissioner for local government for allegedly masterminding the suspension of the education secretaries.