The Taraba State government has refuted the report that the state governor, Agbu Kefas, spent ₦5.22 billion on foreign trips within six months, labelling the claim as false and misleading.
The report, published in a section of the media (not PUNCH), cited the state government’s website and the National Bureau of Statistics and claimed that the governor incurred massive expenditures on international travel.
However, in a statement issued on Sunday, Taraba Commissioner for Information and Reorientation, Zainab Jalingo, dismissed the report as a fabrication lacking any basis in official records.
“This claim is entirely false. It is not based on any official record and constitutes a gross misrepresentation of facts, deliberately presented to mislead the public,” the statement read.
Jalingo clarified that the alleged figure cannot be found in the state’s budgets, official portal, or NBS datasets, urging the public to verify the information.
Court orders full disclosure of N37bn renovation by N’Assembly “We have checked and urged the public to do the same. Until then, the ₦5.22 billion claim remains nothing but fiction,” she said.
The commissioner highlighted the achievements of the current administration in key reforms in education, healthcare, and economic development as evidence of progress.
“Transformation is a gradual process, requiring deliberate planning, tough choices, and sustained effort. The results are beginning to manifest,” the commissioner said.
The government urged the public to disregard the report and rely on official channels for accurate information, reaffirming its commitment to transparency, accountability, and truth.
