The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Head of Service

  • Head of Service challenges civil servants on patriotism

    The Presidency has urged federal civil servants to be patriotic in the course of performing their duties. This they could do by avoiding those who want to pull the country down.

    The Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Alhaji Bukar Goni Aji, who gave the advice in Port Harcourt when he held an interactive session with federal civil servants working in Rivers State also reminded them of the need to understand that it is not only by throwing bombs that one could destroy the country.

    Listing several examples of actions that could undermine the progress of the country, Aji said: “You are pulling the country down when you do not consider the necessity of self development by tuning to national network at 9:00 p.m. to listen to national news; if you do not read the newspapers to get knowledge or encourage children under you to listen to news or mentoring your subordinates well.”

    Represented by the Permanent Secretary, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Linus Awute, he also challenged them on the need to key into the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan by shunning corrupt practices.

    While encouraging them to embrace due process in the discharge of their duties and award of contracts, he stated that “nobody can circumvent due process now because unused funds are paid back into the treasury at the end of the year.”

    Another gain of due process, he explained, is that the tenure system has been ventilated because there is no way one could attain the position of a director and still have 30 more years to go in the civil service.

    Continuing, he said that due process has eradicated “selection system” while there is now an improved and efficient system of keeping records as well as consolidated ways of paying the welfare allowances of civil servants.

    He further used the opportunity to field questions from civil servants with a view to enhancing their efficiency and making them the “critical segment of the workforce” which they are envisioned to be within the ambits of the transformation agenda of the Federal Government.

     

     

  • Jonathan tasks new Head of Service on corruption

    Jonathan tasks new Head of Service on corruption

    President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday in Abuja tasked the new Head of Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF), Alhaji Goni Aji, to intensify efforts at enhancing discipline and curtailing corruption in the service.

    The President made the remark shortly after Aji took his oath of office at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa.

    Jonathan said that Aji must work hard to return the service back to its past glory as centre of excellence, efficiency and hard work.

    The President also called on all civil servants particularly the permanent secretaries to cooperate with the new HOCSF in the restoration of the civil service.

    “As you set about your duties, I expect that you will intensify your efforts to enhance discipline and curtail corruption in the service.

    “The civil service was historically acknowledged as a citadel of excellence where the best brains, equipment and strategies are engaged.

    “Under your leadership, we must all work hard to bring back that type of civil service in the interest of our nation.

    “It is in this regard I want to call on all civil servants to lend you their unalloyed support, especially the permanent secretaries that will work with you and cooperate in the movement to greater efficiency, dedication and patriotism in service,’’ the News Agency of Nigeria quoted President Jonathan as saying at the forum.

    The President noted that the civil service was very central to the realisation of his administration’s transformation agenda.

    To that extent, he said the new HOCSF should pay special attention to the on-going reforms aimed at the ensuring rapid economic development of the country.

  • Goni named new Head of Service of the federation

    Goni named new Head of Service of the federation

    President Goodluck Jonathan has appointed Alhaji Bukar Goni Aji  as the new Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.

     Goni, who was until his new appointment, the Permanent Secretary, Common Services Office, Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, will take over from Alhaji Isa Bello Sali who will attain the mandatory retirement age of 60 on Saturday, March 23.

     An indigene of   Yobe State  born on January 13, 1959,  Goni  attended Government College, Maiduguri, Borno College of Basic Studies, Maiduguri and graduated from the University of Maiduguri in 1984.

     A career civil servant,  Goni has held several key positions at the state and federal levels including Chief Administrative Officer, Governor’s Office, Maiduguri (1989-1991), Principal Secretary to the Military Administrator of Yobe State (1991-1992), Principal Secretary to the First Civilian Governor of Yobe State (1992-1993) and Principal Secretary to the 2nd Military Administrator of Yobe State (1993-1995).

     Goni was appointed Director, Planning, Research and Statistics at the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs in 1995 and moved to the Federal Ministry of Defence in the year 2000 as Director of Personnel  Management. He headed various departments in the Ministry of Defence until his posting to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation in 2008 as Director, International Organisations.

     He was appointed Permanent Secretary in 2009 and posted to the Ministry of Defence. He later served as Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Police Affairs (August, 2009 – August, 2010) and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Works (September, 2011 – November, 2012).

  • ICPC arraigns Head of Service staff over ‘ghost’ pensioners

    ICPC arraigns Head of Service staff over ‘ghost’ pensioners

    The ICPC on Monday arraigned two officials of the office of the Head of Service of the Federation before Justice Hussein Baba-Yusuf for corruptly enriching themselves with pension funds.

    They are are John Emmanuel and Gloria Philadjigbey.

    Emmanuel, a Data Processing Officer, was attached to the Pensions Reform Task Team (PRTT) while Philadjigbey worked as an Office Assistant in the same office. .

    The ICPC arraigned them on a 31-count charge bordering on dishonestly through insertion of “ghost” pensioners on the e-pension data base to perpetrate a N30 million fraud.

    The ICPC, is prosecuting Emmanuel, based on a petition from the Chairman of the Task Team, Abdulrasheed Maina.

    It further alleged that Emmanuel used various banks where he kept some of the pension funds through electronic transfers.

    Both accused pleaded not guilty to the charges.

    The ICPC counsel, Mr Emmanuel Akaakohol, who did not object to an oral bail application by the counsel to the accused, Ms Chinwe Asonme, however, prayed the court to impose conditions that would ensure they attended the trial.

    Baba-Yusuf admitted the two to bail in the sum of N1 million each with two sureties in like sum.

    The sureties, the judge said, must be civil servants, residing within the FCT.

    He adjourned hearing to Feb. 19 for the prosecution to begin its case. (NAN)