Kwara Govt Workers Lament Forced Resignations, Salaries Withheld Over Unrealistic Targets
- KWASSRA workers have accused management of forcing resignations and withholding salaries over “impossible” registration targets
- Staff described the new 300-resident monthly quota as degrading, sparking resignations and public pleas to the governor
- The agency, however, defended the policy, citing absenteeism and fraud among workers while praising officers who meet and exceed targets
Tension and frustration are rising within the Kwara state Residents Registration Agency (KWASSRA) as several workers have been allegedly sacked, unpaid, or forced to resign over what they describe as “unrealistic and inhumane monthly targets” set by the management.
Findings by Legit.ng revealed that the crisis began shortly after the state Government approved an upward review of workers’ salaries about two months ago to align with the new minimum wage structure.
However, the pay increase reportedly came with new conditions that many staff members now call “a trap disguised as a promotion.”
Source: Twitter
According to several employees who spoke to Legit.ng on the condition of anonymity for fear of victimization, each worker is now required to register not less than 300 residents every month, failing which their salary and data allowance are withheld.
One of the affected staff, a field officer in Ilorin East, said:
“They increased our salary, but the new condition makes life harder. If you don’t meet the 300-resident target, you won’t get paid. Imagine going out daily under the sun, burning your own fuel and data, and still not getting a kobo at the end of the month.”
Another employee added that the new system has led to widespread non-payment and resignations.
“They owe people every month because out of 500 staff, maybe 250 manage to meet the target,” he said.
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Several staff members who spoke to Legit.ng confirmed that many of their colleagues resigned just last week, Friday, October 24, while others were informally told not to return until they met the required number of registrations.
“Due to the unrealistic targets given to us and with the governor insisting through the General Manager that it must be enforced, some of our colleagues have left the job. Even when you meet your target, they still find reasons to delay payment or remove your data allowance,” another source lamented.
A senior officer in the agency described the condition as degrading.
He said the management is ignoring the realities on the ground.
“They want everyone to register 300 people per month, but where are those people? Almost every household in our local government has already been registered. Some of us even go to other local governments to beg for residents to register, just to survive.”
“Maybe they want us to start fabricating the data for us to meet the target,” the senior officer added.
Another staff member claimed that the management’s obsession with meeting internal quotas is politically motivated rather than driven by data accuracy.
“It’s like they’re desperate to hit some numbers for political presentation. They keep saying we must impress the governor. But what kind of leadership uses workers’ sweat for a political show-off?” the worker asked.
Some employees who tried to confront the General Manager reportedly faced intimidation.
“The GM told us clearly that there will be no salary without meeting 300 registrations, no matter our excuses,” one said.
“We tried explaining that people have already been captured across the state, but he refused to listen. Instead, he threatened to replace anyone who complained.”
A female data officer in Kwara North also spoke of the mental and financial strain the policy has caused.
“We borrow to buy data and transport ourselves to villages daily. At the end of the month, they say we didn’t meet the target, so no payment. I’m a widow with two children; how do they expect me to survive like this?” she said with her voice breaking.
Workers are now calling on Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq to urgently intervene and compel the agency’s leadership to review the policy, clear outstanding salaries, and create a fairer performance system.
KWASRRA clarifies performance-driven registration targets
When contacted for clarification, the Acting General Manager, KWASRRA, Tajudeen Jimoh, explained that the agency began operations in July 2024, shortly after its official launch by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq at the Government House Banquet Hall.
Source: Facebook
According to him, “At the inception, the consultant on the project advised that we engage about 500 ad-hoc staff so we could register three million Kwarans within three years. However, His Excellency, in his wisdom, approved that 150 should be engaged initially.”
Jimoh said that by October 2024, the agency realised that the initial staff strength was not meeting the registration target, prompting a request to increase the number to 300, which was subsequently approved.
However, the expected results did not follow.
“While we had 300 staff, the total daily registration was not even up to 300,” he lamented.
“That meant many of the ad-hoc staff were either not working or something else was wrong.”
Following an internal probe carried out through the project consultant, the agency discovered widespread absenteeism and fraud among the temporary workers.
“Most of them applied, got trained, received the registration devices, and were posted to their areas, but never reported. They connived with supervisors to create the impression that they were working, and in return, shared their monthly salaries,” Jimoh said.
He added that disciplinary measures were taken against those involved, but despite the crackdown, “the unfortunate situation continued.” Between January and May 2025, he said, the agency kept paying salaries without corresponding results, describing the development as “a waste of public funds.”
Jimoh noted that some of the ad-hoc workers appeared to view the job as a form of political patronage.
“It’s as if they see the job as part of the ‘Kwara cake,’” he said.
By May 2025, the agency reportedly decided to end the engagement of non-performing workers and pay them off.
“We paid everyone and set a new daily registration target of 15 per officer instead of the initial 24. Those who couldn’t meet the new target by June and July were stopped,” he explained.
He alleged that some of those dismissed later went on social media to spread propaganda against the agency and the state government, listing grievances such as the “15 registrations per day target,” “monthly pay of ₦50,000 and ₦60,000 for supervisors,” and “the ₦2,000 monthly data allowance.”
The GM, however, dismissed those complaints as baseless:
“When His Excellency approved ₦50,000 as salary last year, the minimum wage was ₦30,000. But as a listening leader, the Governor approved an upward review — ₦70,000 for data officers and ₦80,000 for supervisors,” he said.
Jimoh further disclosed that the agency carried out a revalidation exercise to ensure only serious and committed officers remained. During that process, all conditions were clearly spelled out:
“It’s a performance-driven job. Only those who meet their daily targets will be paid. The data allowance has also been increased from ₦2,000 to ₦3,000.”
He revealed that many of the underperforming staff had other engagements.
“We found that several of them are teachers in private schools, POS operators, or students, which affects their performance,” he said.
Defending the new performance system, Jimoh argued that the targets were achievable, citing examples of officers who exceeded them.
“If they claim the target is unrealistic, how come their hardworking colleagues are surpassing it and even earning extra pay?” he asked.
“In order to assist them further and also add a human face to the whole thing, the Agency, under my watch, paid those who registered up to 250 for last month, despite the fact that the target was 300,” he added.
Kwara launches N130,000 incentive for girl-child education
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Kwara state Government has introduced a financial incentive of N130,000 for parents who enroll and retain their daughters in school, aiming to reduce the number of out-of-school girls across the state.
Implemented under the World Bank-supported Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) project, over 37,000 girls have been listed as beneficiaries, with disbursement expected to begin soon.
Source: Legit.ng
