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Tag: FCC

  • Fed Govt reconstitutes boards of FCC, HYREP

    Fed Govt reconstitutes boards of FCC, HYREP

    President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has named Environment Minister Balarabe Lawal as Chairman of the reconstituted Governing Council and Board of Trustees of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYREP).

    Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga confirmed Presidential approval for the reconstituted HYREP board in a statement.

    The statement listed Loanyie Barituka Victor as the representative of Non-Governmental Organisations focused on the environment. Bright Onyebuchi Jacob and Henry Obiabure will represent Niger Delta communities.

    The Ogoni community representatives on the new Council are Prof Barinedum Michael Nwibere and Baride Abdul Gwezia.

    Two nominees that will represent the nine oil-producing states are Gideon Onyebuwa Melfor and Dr. Ibikunle Omotehinse.

    Four alternate members were also named to represent Ogoniland and the Niger Delta.

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    They include: Rev. Canon Abraham Olungwe, who was reappointed; Maeba Power Ekpobari (Ogoniland) and Joseph Akedesuo and Beauty Warejuowei for Niger Delta.

    In the Board of Trustees reconstitution, President Tinubu reappointed Emmanuel Nwiika Deeyah as Chairman.

    Other members include Fred Mbombo Igwe and Dr. Fred Barivule Kpakol, representing Ogoni communities and stakeholders; Mrs. Dorcas Amos, representing other Niger Delta communities; and Chief Jide Damazio, reappointed as the representative of NGOs dealing with environmental issues.

  • ‘No rift between FCC chairman, 29 commissioners’

    ‘No rift between FCC chairman, 29 commissioners’

    There is no crisis between the Executive Chairman of the Federal Character Commission (FCC), Muheebat Dankaka and the commissioners representing the states in the commission, the management stated yesterday.

    It was reacting to a report that 29 out of the 37 federal commissioners were at loggerheads with the FCC chairman.

    The aggrieved 29 commissioners were reported to have petitioned President Bola Tinubu and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, accusing the chairman of flagrant abuse of the Constitution and the extant law of the commission.

    In the petition, they demanded the removal of the chairman to save the integrity of the commission.

    But in statement yesterday, the chairman dismissed the allegation and insisted that the commission has no crisis, adding that some elements were bent in plunging the commission into crisis.

    The statement was issued by Abdullahi Adamu Idris, a director in the chairman’s office.

    He described the report as “a further attempt to deceive and rail back stale and recycled news which was an attempt by four Commissioners to ignite chaos and derail the reforms agenda of the executive chairman.

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    “It should be stated unequivocally that there is no crisis of confidence. Commissioners and the commission are at peace and there is no conflict of any kind whatsoever.

    “The futile attempt by the protagonist of the publication in claiming a certain signatures of commissioners to that effect is an attendance register lists of members at the plenary which was falsely presented to justify the narrative.

    “We request the general public to discard and disregard such un-founded publication which is false, malicious and spurious presentations.

    “Those who are desirous of truncating the relative calm at the commission will not succeed as the earlier misunderstanding arising from interpretation of the Act has been resolved at the highest level of governance.

    “The executive chairman reiterates her commitment to discharge her duties with high sense of responsibility guided by the oath of her office.”

  • Minister to FCC: Enlighten Nigerians on your activities

    Minister to FCC: Enlighten Nigerians on your activities

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, on Friday challenged the Federal Character Commission (FCC) to enlighten Nigerians on its activities.

    The minister gave the challenge when he received top officials of the Commission, led by its Secretary, Malam Mahmoud Tukur, in his office in Abuja.

    Mohammed specifically urged the FCC to enlighten the people on spread of federal appointments.

    He said: “Nigerians need to know and appreciate what you are doing, and I think we need more of this interaction.

    “At our level at the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, we will partner with you in the area of enlightenment campaigns to unite the country better.

    “Once the people have a sense of belonging, then it is the recipe for unity.”

    Mohammed said it was important for the Commission to change the perception and the mindset of people about it.

    In doing that, he said, the FCC must invest in advocacy, interactions and visits.

    Mohammed said it was always convenient for people to look at a few appointments and make a general statement of marginalisation without taking a holistic view of federal appointments.

    However, the minister noted that adequate and equitable representation in federal institutions would give a sense of belonging to every Nigerian and equally strengthen the bond of unity.

    “It is gladdening to note that the objective and the mandate of the Commission go beyond just ensuring that there is balance, equity and fairness in the federal ministries and parastatals.

    ‘’You are also very duly concerned about the spread of infrastructure.

    “I think the two mandates are very important and germane to the unity, stability and peace of this country,” Mohammed added.

    NAN

  • Charging application fee by MDAs illegal, says FCC

    Charging application fee by MDAs illegal, says FCC

    The Acting Chairman, Federal Character Commission (FCC) Mohammed Bello Alkali yesterday frowned at the practice of collecting application fees by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for application online, describing it as illegal.

    Alkali who spoke with reporters in Abuja, stated that it has come to the notice of the FCC that MDAs have been charging applicants what they call application fee, for job processing, insisting that it was wrong.

    He said: “The application fee charged by these MDAs ranges from between N2,000 and N3,000.

    “This practice is illegal as it runs contrary to Federal Character Commission guidelines on recruitment into the Nigerian public service as well as Presidential Directives on Recruitment which completely stopped buying of scratch card.

    “The commission will henceforth, without further notice sanction any Chief Executive of MDAs that flout these guidelines.”

    Alkali said the commission is on a sensitisation campaign, notifying applicants that they are not supposed to pay fee for job whether on-line or hard copy.

    Recruiting MDA should arrange for the payment of approved consultants without taking the applicants’ money, he said.

  • ‘Eagles to repeat Atlanta miracle’

    ‘Eagles to repeat Atlanta miracle’

    A top official of the Federal Character Commission (FCC) has backed the Super Eagles to impress at the World Cup by emulating the exploits of Nigeria’s team to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
    The Deputy-Commissioner of the FCC, Bukar Bello, made this assertion during a courtesy visit by officials of the Commission to the Nigeria Football Federation Secretariat in Abuja.
    “When our U-23 boys left these shores for the 1996 Olympic Games in United States, no one gave them a chance.
    “All the bookmakers noted some other teams as favourites but Nigeria was not among. In the end, the Dream Team stunned the world by winning the gold medal.
    “We see the same thing happening in Brazil. The so-called experts are tipping the famous names, such as Brazil, Germany, Italy and Argentina to win. But we believe the Super Eagles have the character to go there and make the country and the continent proud,” KickOffNigeria.com quoted the FCC official as saying at the forum.
    The officials of the FCC were on a routine visit to the NFF, and commended the Federation for its thoroughness and deliberate efforts to ensure that federal character is reflected in the composition of its executive committee, as well as its management and staff.

     

  • Character commission chief to tackle nepotism

    The Federal Character Commission (FCC) has vowed to tackle nepotism and other vices in workers’ recruitment into government ministries, departments and agencies.

    Acting Chairman of the commission, Alhaji Lawal Ibrahim Funtua, made the pledge at a workshop by FCC’s Committee on Science and Technology, for agencies under its purview in Abuja.

    Funtua said: “We were established to fight nepotism and other ills bedevilling recruitment in this country and that we have done, and we vow to intensify our activities against nepotism.

    “We will continue to ensure that, in each recruitment, merit exists. We have a formula which we strictly adhere to and through seminars, monitoring activities and sensitisation; we will insist that nepotism is halted.”

    Also, Chairman of the Science and Technology Committee of the FCC, Alhaji Yarima Aliyu Giade, said the workshop would foster a national consciousness aimed at giving every citizen a sense of belonging regardless of ethnicity and religion.

    Chairman of the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service, Senator Akpan Etuk, has commended the management of the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC), for its efforts, advice and observations on harmonisation of salaries of workers in the country.

    In a statement signed by its spokesman, Maxwell Eseigbe, the commissioner said the committee also urged the Federal Ministry of Finance to release the balance of a recent allocation made to the commission to enable it execute vital projects on ground.

    Earlier, the Chairman of the commission, Richard Onwuka Egbule, said his team would continue to do its best in ensuring harmony in the compensation system in the country.

  • Senate summons FCC chief for screening

    The Senate Committee on Federal Character and Inter-Governmental Affairs has summoned the Chairman of the Federal Character Commission (FCC), Prof Shuaibu Abdulrahman Oba, for fresh screening, it was learnt yesterday.

    Although Oba was the chairman of the commission, he resigned to contest the 2011 governorship election in Kwara State, but failed.

    His return to the office generated a lot of controversy as the then Acting Chairman of the FCC, Alhaji Mohammadu Ari Gwaska, accused him of breaching civil service rules which prohibit an officer who resigned to contest an election from returning to the seat he willingly vacated to go into politics.

    However, Oba had his way, while the Senate charged Gwaska with insubordination and was shown the way out of the commission.

    Gwaska was then the National Commissioner representing Nasarawa State.

    Part C of the Third Schedule of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) states that the Chairman and members of the FCC shall be appointed by the President, subject to the confirmation of the Senate.

    But there are fears that Oba may not have a smooth sail this time round becuase two senators from Kwara State are said to have opposed his reappointment.

    A source close to the Senator Dahiru Kuta-led Committee on Federal Character said there were petitions before the committee against the former University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) Vice-Chancellor.

    Another source close to the FCC chief said he may have “bitten the fingers that fed him”, prompting the stiff opposition to his clearance by the Senate.

    The summons by the committee was said to have caught the FCC chief by surprise.

    The source said Oba is presently doing all he can to appease the leadership of the Kwara State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to retain his job.

    The source added: “After he served out his term as the chairman of FCC, which he got through the political leader of Kwara State, Senator Bukola Saraki, he went lobbying the Presidency to serve a second term that he knew he might not get from the state due to zoning arrangement of political offices in the state, which did not favour him.

    “He started a cold war with Senator Saraki and he was able to get a second term from the Presidency through a letter from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).

    “He organised a prayer session at the Emir’s palace in Ilorin, which was not attended by the party leadership. He also commissioned news stories and opinion articles in many online portals, saying the party leadership in the state did not have input in how he got his second term appointment, having it in mind that he needed not to be confirmed by the Senate.

    “But his joy was short-lived two weeks ago when he was informed by the SGF that he would need to go back to the Senate for confirmation.

    “This shocked him and his supporters, who had believed that he didn’t need the two-thirds of the state or at least the support of two senators from the state to get Senate’s confirmation.

    “With this new development and having known that he altered the state political zoning formula, he reached out to a party leader in the state to help him beg Senator Saraki.”

     

  • Job racketeering: Mark, FCC boss blame MDAs, others

    Job racketeering: Mark, FCC boss blame MDAs, others

    Senate President David Mark yesterday blamed the Head of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), military and paramilitary organisations for the menace of jobs-for-sale-to-the-highest-bidder in the country.

    He said the heads of the MDAs and their military and paramilitary counterparts were “guilty” of the scam.

    The Chairman of the Federal Character Commission (FCC), Prof. Oba Abdulraman, said the trend, which is being aided by the MDAs, is a major source of insecurity in the country.

    Mark and Abdulraman spoke at the opening of a two-day public hearing on ‘Employment irregularities in federal establishments in Nigeria’, organised by the Senate Joint Committees on Federal Character and Inter-Governmental Affairs and Employment, Labour and Productivity.

    The Senate President lamented a situation where those who find themselves in positions of authority think first about their immediate families and relations when it comes to job placements.

    He said the Senate was concerned about job insecurity in the MDAs and other organisations.

    Mark said: “Similarly, we are concerned that people who have found themselves in position of authority think first about their immediate relations, other extended family members and not the best and the most competent.

    “Most heads of federal establishments secure for their relations unwarranted advantage or favour, which they are not ordinarily legally or morally entitled to.

    “This is a manifestation of a corrupt society where there is no equity or fairness.

    “Head of Ministries, Departments, Agencies, Military and Paramilitary organisations are all guilty of this.”

    He noted that that the practice has killed patriotism and ignited anger from the citizens, who have been denied their rightful place on account of their ethnic backgrounds.

    He said: “This has led to frustration, declining productivity and corruption, because since putting their best is not recognised, they exploit the slightest available means to fulfil their desire.

    “What is also more worrisome is that employment into federal establishments is for the highest bidder.

    “Our newspapers are awash with allegations that there are agents in and outside these establishments, who facilitate the sale of job slots.

    “The desperate applicants sell their property to buy these slots. For our leaders of tomorrow to buy job portends a dangerous signal for the future generation.”