The Nation Newspaper

Tag: salary

  • Cut 50% ‘Salary, Allowances, Perks, Pensions’ SAPP

    Cut 50% ‘Salary, Allowances, Perks, Pensions’ SAPP

    Since 1999 most Nigerians have called out the immoral unsustainable ‘but illegally legal’ high cost of financially and materially supporting and accommodating [s]elected, apparently deaf, officials in governance. The protest is because Nigerians in every people’s beer parlour debate club court, and ‘free readers association’ at newsstands have identified that their increasing suffering and poverty is directly precipitated by the huge greed, unchecked kleptomania, outright massive theft, professional financial mismanagement, redeployment of known financial-thieves-in-political-office and ludicrously outrageous spending style of those in-and-around governance especially the conspicuous consumption of constituency project funds and media frenzy ‘grandiose personal donations’ of Other People’s Money [citizens’ money] to communities. Could first ladies become financial patron to thousands of orphanages and physically challenged NGOs and not only First Lady NGOs?

    Nigerians know it is their money or goods merely being returned to them so why do they have to ‘Thank Governors, NASS members or government’ for such misnamed generosity and gifts? Nothing is from the ‘donor’s’ personal pockets. These cumulative financial travesties of human rights inflicted on the ‘common wealth’ have devalued our currency and living standards. The link between increased government greed and increasing poverty and needs of citizens is ‘Nigeria’s political curse’. Citizens are overburdened by the excesses of politics both in structure – two houses,  senate and House of Representatives, where only one would do – and in political personnel with their hornet swarm of ‘multi-layered ‘jobs for the loyal aides and special advisors’, buzzing around in federal and state feeding frenzy. These have burdened every Nigerian and are a ‘dirty slap in the face’ insult to poor Nigerians struggling to feed families.  The burden is the extravagant lifestyle, ‘Salary, Allowances, Perks & Pension’ of the Nigerian political class SAPPing Nigeria dry.

    To this we must add the ludicrous cost of elections which now include the irresponsible cost of presidential candidacy forms being sold for an unbelievable N100,000,000 in some parties with proportionately lower fees for other offices. Politicians who imposed this cost should shamefully know that this fee precipitated a further fall in the respect for and value of the naira starting with kidnappers, maybe foreign, who the very next week started to demand N100,000,000 for their victims’ release. See the connection. Political big living influences terrorists as well creating an unrealistically high cost of freedom.

    The problem with such presidential form charges is that all election costs with generous interest may be retrieved by the election winning party through bogus components of inflated or fictitious contracts. ‘Election Expenses Recovery’ is an unwritten cost of any government imposed on the budget. Following successful removal of such funds [+undisclosed interest or charges] there is a drive to fill an election war chest, merely a palatable name for just another politically criminal corrupt enterprise placed on the back of Nigerians. Nothing is free in politics, but politicians pay for nothing they spend, the people do.

    Read Also: ‘Give me more time’ – Tinubu begs Nigerians

    Every kobo spent on politics comes from the people’s pocket, directly through their budget allocations to NASS etcetera or indirectly, by theft and corruption. It is that way for all capitalistic businesses selling products. They run on the eternal capitalist economic primary principle that the sale of the product to the people yields money which eventually pays for the product and the emoluments of employees guaranteeing the manufacturing process. In this case, the product is the, up till now, very illusive good governance. The manufacturing process of that good governance is the dysfunctional and unnecessarily expensive practice of politics. The management and staff are employees and are politicians and civil servants receiving excessive and often secretive perks. The problem is that the cost of producing the product good governance is now clearly far too high compared to the poor quality and quantity of  good governance the very elusive  ‘dividends of democratic politics’. Indeed, most Nigerians would call the product of Nigerian politics a very fake product for which our poor country is paying a wrong premium price. 

    The non-political party majority of Nigerians demand that the poorly produced product be improved and the cost of production be reduced. The example of Kenya should remind all politicians of some of the consequences in some societies of rubbishing the people you offer an unfinished, inferior or fake product to. Nigerians are not mumu, just pathologically patient with serial political fiscal failures and criminality.

    These legitimate demands to scale back a cavernous political and official avarice, devouring poor Nigeria, are finally partly being met by an overdue ‘50% reduction on some few politicians’ salaries’  insultingly for six months, not even ‘six months with an option of renewal’ if the economy and naira value remains poor. But this, announced with sound and fury, is an annoyingly hollow gesture marginally reducing the cost of politics. ‘Immediate implementation of 50% of salary cut, allowances, perks, pension’, forever, would have been a significant contribution to calming the public while reducing the cost of politics and demonstrating remorse for past kleptomania and recklessness with ‘Other People’s Money’ -the ‘opium of politics’.  To survive, Nigeria needs more than gestures. ‘50% of salary’ is not a gesture.

    And 50% of multiple millions each is not a sacrifice, it is PAY PARITY CORRECTION’ for immoral, financial and economic crime, overpayment to right a wrong done reinforced since 1999 against Nigeria. Worldwide politicians work within the systems salary structure, not above it and often work almost for free.

  • Nays’, Salary; Weapons; Election; Meters; Collapse

    Nays’, Salary; Weapons; Election; Meters; Collapse

    Summary: National Assembly ‘Nays’ on increasing security oversite vote – we need electronic voting; pay 1800 Unity teachers 36 months’ salary; recycle seized weapons; UK speedy political handover- a lesson; metering of oil well pumps welcome; the tragedy of the pupils’ deaths in collapsed school building.

    Congratulations to Spain and England -first and second in the Euro 2024.

    NASS voice majority says a surprising ‘nay’ against Senator Oshiomhole’s ‘Strengthening Oversight Committee Functions’ to ensure the military spend on new weaponry to face real threats. This is a huge surprise even to Senate President Godswill Akpabio who, in shock, repeated the vote and got another ‘nays have it’. The law was to prevent further corruption and diversion of funds to projects like a non-military focused university and a ‘yacht’ and funds for weapons buried in officers’ cesspools. The ‘nays have it’ NASS members should be named to explain this indictment on transparent democracy, condoning wrongdoing.  NASS is a laughing-stock, losing a transparency opportunity. Voice votes are anonymous. We have recommended for years e-voting with name related published results for accountability.

    Read Also: FG approves new measures to combat malnutrition, food insecurity in Nigeria

    NO TEACHER SALARY 36 MONTHS? This is ‘Monumental Federal Failure’. Civil Service heads must role including Directors with no cover up. How can 1,800 secondary school teachers in Unity Schools work without wages? What quality and quantity of work can they render?  The fault is with unsupervised ‘godlike’ administrators who constitute the system and was caused by incompetence of Education and Finance ministries, civil service arrogance and dereliction of duty in regard to physical transfer of files and the logistic challenges of entering data into the problem-prone corrupted or incompetent Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, IPPIS. This irresponsible behaviour has probably led to death, disease, desperation and depression among the 1800 teachers and their families. Certainly, persons without a salary for 36+months should be encouraged to write a book about ‘Living without a wage in Nigeria’.   

    SEIZED WEAPONS: Nigeria must recycle the N3b weapons seized by vigilant Customs, for training in marksmanship and equipping government forces. Some malevolent Nigerian citizens unintendedly gave Nigeria N3b weapons and munitions, probably our stolen money. Can they not be apprehended by following the goods movement paper trail and the money trail to and from the Turkish munitions plant where the goods were ordered, purchased, paid for and evacuated to the port? Is the Turkish government not aware or complicit? It is immoral and speaks to a lack of understanding of simple cost/benefit economics, to destroy this valuable unintended ‘gift’ when we are broke and are fighting an undeclared war on many fronts. We cannot even afford to pay the contractor for destruction of the munitions. We should find out who bought the equipment, with what money from where and which bank, and prosecute accordingly. However, we must not destroy but divert the munitions from the nefarious activities planned by the evil purchasers and instead use the munitions to service our military and paramilitary training programmes.

    UK ELECTIONS: UK election Lessons are many. ‘Instant Politics’ announced on May 22 and completed on July 4-5. No voter corruption, violence, thugs, summersault verdicts, courts of ‘wrong jurisdiction’ (wrong court, idiot!), delays and massive refurbishment costs. It was less than 18 hours from verdict-to-10 Downing Street reoccupation. Nigeria was forced by military fiat to give up the colonial inherited UK system when we managed, as usual, to bastardise it with irresponsible cross carpeting form party to party ad nauseum without the courtesy of resigning one’s parliamentary seat. This amounted to stealing the votes and dashing them to the party opposed to the majority of voters. So now we have a mutated bastardised and misinterpreted US system but can learn lessons from both.

    METERING OF OIL PUMPS: The announcement of metering of Nigeria’s 187 oil pumps is 40 years in the pipeline and repeatedly shot down and sabotaged by the usual petroleum parasites in leadership position. We pray it will be allowed to happen and to work to measure Nigeria’s oil production transparently on the minute-to-minute basis. The field oil meter reader job was dangerous and they were ‘endangered species’ where meters were available due to violence, corruption like cooking figures. Will this change with electronic controls? Well pumps should be shut down if they cannot be metered. This is the only way metering and oil production with grow, hand in hand. If this move is effective, perhaps Nigeria@2024, not petroleum manipulators, will at last, after 60+ years, be in charge of its oil production figures with foreign exchange resultant prosperity.

    SCHOOL COLLAPSE: The loss of between 16 and 22 innocent young Nigerians, merely for being attentive and going to school to learn to become part of a greater Nigeria, is a tragedy for themselves, their parents, siblings and wider family and Nigeria in general. This is especially now, when so many schools are no-go areas due to terrorism including farmers being terrorised and murdered by weaponised cow herders etc. – some 10million- are children out of school, fenced from their right to education and denied access for various reasons totally out of the control of the victims. The coming investigation will identify the cause like structural, poor cement, poor foundation, erosion, but will not bring back loved souls. Nigeria deserves a nationwide alert by National Orientation Agency, NOA and prevention, then there will be no pupil or citizens deaths to be mourned or investigated.

  • Salary fraud

    Salary fraud

    • Japa thieves and their collaborators must refund the entitlements they illegally collected

    President Bola Tinubu’s intervention in the scandalous salary fraud in the Federal Civil Service was necessary.  “During my recent visit to South Africa,” he said, “I kept abreast of the week’s activities and was particularly struck by the revelations shared by the Head of the Civil Service regarding employees who had relocated abroad while drawing salaries without formally resigning.”

    Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF) Folasade Yemi-Esan told journalists that the fraud was discovered following a verification exercise that required everybody on the nominal roll who was receiving salaries to appear physically. The objective of the exercise was to stop the salaries of those who had left the service without proper documentation but were still earning remuneration.

    The physical headcount in the federal ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) exposed the fraud. “From what I saw, the number of people that have gone out of the country and are still earning salaries, is more in the parastatals than in the core ministries,” she said.

    The question is not about where there was a greater number of such cases. The issue is that such fraud should not have been allowed to happen in the first place. This raises serious systemic questions, particularly about accounting operations in the MDAs. 

    Shockingly, she learnt that some of those benefiting from the fraud had rushed back to the country from the UK, with the intention of participating in the verification exercise. She said some of them were forced to resign when they could not participate in the exercise. It is immoral that those who had left the country for perceived greener pastures abroad wanted to continue receiving salaries from the civil service, and made fraudulent arrangements to make that happen. That is corruption.

    Read Also: We’ll pay salary arrears in tranches – Abia Govt

    There is also the disturbing possibility that there may be people who had left the civil service but were unaware that they were still on the payroll, and whose salaries were being received by fraudulent insiders.

    It is unclear how long the discovered fraud had existed, and how many people were involved, directly or indirectly. But it was striking enough to attract the President’s attention. Obviously, it could not have existed without collusion between those who fraudulently received salaries they never worked for and those who were supposed to ensure that such payments did not occur.

     The President’s position on the issue highlighted the circle of collusion. He said: “The culprits must be made to refund the money they have fraudulently collected. Their supervisors and department heads must also be punished for aiding and abetting the fraud.” Both consequences should send a strong signal that fraud is unacceptable.

    This discovery of fraud in the middle of reforms under Yemi-Esan shows that there is a need for more reforms in the MDAs. She has been credited with reforms towards improving civil service welfare. She must also introduce urgent reforms to ensure the prevention of fraud. Apart from losing money by paying ghost workers, having them on the payroll blocks the employment of many Nigerians waiting to be employed.

    It is commendable that the civil service leadership discovered this fraud. Considering the ongoing efforts to review the national minimum wage, the country would have had to pay the ghost workers based on the outcome of the review, thereby losing more money. It is bad enough that they also benefited from the N35,000 provisional wage award for all treasury-paid Federal Government workers, to improve the welfare of the workforce, pending the new minimum wage.

    As the President said, the authorities “must ensure those responsible are held accountable and restitution is made.” It is equally important to institute reforms to prevent fraud in the civil service.

  • ‘Lecturers on same salary level for 15 years’

    ‘Lecturers on same salary level for 15 years’

    The Benin Zonal Coordinator of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Monday Igbafen, yesterday expressed sadness that lecturers in Nigerian universities have been on the same salary level for 15 years, over the refusal to satisfactorily implement the 2009 agreement.

    He spoke at a news conference at the University of Benin (UNIBEN) in Edo State.

    Igbafen said: “The nagging issues between the government and our union revolve round the abysmal failure by the government to satisfactorily implement the 2009 FGN/ASUU agreement. The resulting issues have been the source of the seemingly unending confrontation between us as a union and the government.

    Read Also:Policeman demands payment of salary arrears

    “The issues include the stalled renegotiation of 2009 FGN/ASUU agreement; funding for the revitalisation of public universities, based on the FGN-ASUU Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) of 2021, 2013, and the Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) of 2017; the illegal dissolution of governing councils in federal and state universities; and withheld salaries in federal and state universities.

  • Why salary increment is no antidote to economic hardship

    Why salary increment is no antidote to economic hardship

    • By Bashir Khalid Furyam

    Sir: One of the first major decisions taken by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on assumption of office on May 29 was the removal of the long-standing fuel subsidy

    However, the decision has caused prices of petrol and other basic commodities in the country to skyrocket.

    Many experts had predicted the short-term negative implications of the fuel subsidy removal including pushing up petrol prices, decrease in the economic growth, worsening inflation and poverty rates as well as loss of jobs in the informal sector.

    After a series of negotiations, the federal government came up with palliative measures in collaboration with state governments. The government promised cash support for the poor and providing a subsidised public transport system with state-run buses in major cities. The programmes are meant to cushion the adverse effects on individuals and businesses. 

    But there are concerns that the palliative packages might not reach the targeted beneficiaries due to corruption.  There is also the problem of inadequate data on the actual number of the needy in Nigeria coupled with the high number of less privileged in the country – which means the budgeted funds may be insufficient to cover the country.

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) are not convinced by these measures by the government. That is why they threatened an indefinite strike action to force the government to do more and better.

    Read Also: Tribunal upholds ex-House leader Doguwa’s election

    Thus, after a series of meetings and discussions between the organized labour and the federal government, agreements were reached to increase the salary of workers which resulted to suspension of the strike earlier scheduled to start on October 3.

    The federal government announced an increase of the salary to all categories of workers. This is also seen as problematic because salary increase always comes with commodity prices increase. Some also say government workers represent only a small percentage of the Nigerian population which means the vast majority of Nigerians might not benefit. Many are wondering how the citizens who are not workers in formal employment are going to survive the hardship.

    The NLC and the government should review the decision in order to avert adding salt to the wounds of ordinary citizens. The government must come up with long-term economic measures to provide job opportunities for the country’s teeming youth and tackle poverty. It must also judiciously invest the trillions of Naira being saved from the fuel subsidy removal. This will ensure the long-term anticipated benefits of the subsidy removal are enjoyed by a wide spectrum of the Nigerian society.

    •Bashir Khalid Furyam,

    Bauchi

  • Agency boss assures workers of salary

    Agency boss assures workers of salary

    The General Manager of Abia State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (ASOPADEC), Ven. Joshua Onyeike, has assured workers that the commission would pay their outstanding salaries.

    Onyeike said yesterday that the commission should be given more time to attend to the issue, noting that paying salaries was a critical function of any government. 

    In an interview, the ASOPADEC general manager said it was the focus of the Governor Alex Otti administration to ensure that ‘Abians’ would experience a new lease of life.

    He appealed to the workers to show more understanding by giving the government more time to clear the backlog of salaries, saying it was important to ascertain the actual staff strength of the commission, to avoid a situation whereby government money would get into the wrong hands.

    Read Also: Afe Babalola varsity raises workers’ salary by 35%

    The GM said on assumption of office, he discovered that the commission had too many people who were not coming to work, and he decided to initiate a physical verification to ascertain the actual and genuine number of workers in the commission.

    Onyeike, who disclosed that he had reduced the number of months of outstanding salaries, noted that it was in the interest of the state that resources were managed in a prudent manner.

  • ‘Ayade should implement 100 per cent salary structure’

    The Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) has begged the Cross River State Governor, Ben Ayade, to approve and implement the 100 per cent Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) for doctors in the state in line with other Southsouth states.

    The association made the appeal in a communiqué released at the end of the Zonal Executive Council Meeting in Delta State.

    The communiqué, signed by the Chairman and Secretary, Dr Agam Ayuk and Dr Ezoke Epoke, both of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, said approving the salary structure will help to retain skilled workforce in the state service.

    They emphasised the urgent need for proper budgetary funding and release to the health sector, at least 15 per cent of total budget in accordance with the declaration of 2001 by African Head of States and upgrade of health facilities in all federal and state hospitals.

    The communiqué reads: “NMA also advocates for judicious use of the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund towards providing quality and affordable healthcare services to Nigerians.

    “NMA appeals to the Federal and State Governments, in keeping with the Sustainable Development Goals, to show commitment in achieving Universal Health Coverage for Nigerians by 2030. The Zone implores doctors at all levels, especially those in leadership positions, to be conversant with the Strategic Health Development Plan II and to actively play their part to see to its successful implementation.”

    On the migration of doctors to other countries, the zone implored the Federal Government to address the issue by improving health infrastructure, working conditions, remuneration and ensuring structured placement for doctors of all cadres.

    The zone also advocated for stringent legislation at various states to curb quackery, even as he called on all NMA Southsouth states to sponsor medical anti-quackery bills at the Houses of Assembly.

  • Workers shut down National Assembly over pay

    •Saraki, Dogara direct Clerk, others to resolve issues

    PARLIAMENTARY Staff Association of Nigeria (PASAN) members yesterday made good their threat to disrupt activities at the National Assembly.

    The workers, in their numbers, shutdown the National Assembly over alleged non-payment of their salary and other allowances.

    The two chambers of the National Assembly were barricaded by the placards’ bearing workers as they stopped senators and House of Representatives members from accessing their offices.

    Principal officers, including Senate President Bukola Saraki, Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, Speaker House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara and his deputy, Lasun Yusuff, were not left out.

    Some of the protesting workers took over the National Assembly lobby chanting solidarity songs as they displayed their numerous placards with various inscriptions.

    Read also: National Assembly should intervene in Ondo Assembly crisis, says Speaker

    Others mocked senators and House of Representatives members as they staged a fake parliamentary session with one of them bearing the mess.

    The workers had at the weekend threatened to picket the National Assembly over the issues.

    Clerk to the National Assembly Mohammed Sani-Omolori, however, insisted that the protest was uncalled for, especially when the demands of the workers were being treated.

    The workers vowed to continue the protest until Sani Omolori is removed from office.

    They claimed that efforts to explore dialogue with the management failed to yield expected results.

    They also claimed that since Sani-Omolori came on board, 28 per cent increase of Consolidated Legislative Salary Structure (CONLESS), which was captured in 2018 budget has not been paid.

    “The money has been released alongside other releases, and we ask where is our allowance?”

    “We will not rest on CONLESS until we receive alert. Omolori must go,” the workers chanted.

    PASAN issued a statement at the weekend to alert the National Assembly management of its planned protest scheduled for three days beginning from yesterday.

    Some of the placards read: “Pass our condition of service bill”; “CONLESS is not tied to 2018 budget”; “Give us our CONLESS”; “Bank loans are killing”; “No alert no sitting”; “Stop Omolori now before he stops Nigeria democracy”, “Omolori must go”; “We are not slaves”.

    When Saraki succeeded in paving his way to address the protesting workers, he assured them that the National Assembly leadership would meet management to resolve issues at stake.

    Saraki also assured that the two chambers would take steps to fast-track the passage of the Condition of Service for National Assembly bill.

    The Senate President pleaded with the workers to call off their protest as their demands would be met.

    Senate Leader Ahmed Lawan said the protest was not against the leadership of the National Assembly but against the management.

    Saraki and House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara have directed the National Assembly Management Committee to resolve the issues raised by the protesting members of staff and report back to them by Friday.

    A statement issued in Abuja by  Special Adviser (Media and Publicity) to the Senate President, Yusuph Olaniyonu, said at a meeting attended by the National Assembly’s Management and members of staff under the umbrella of the Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria (PASAN), Saraki and the Speaker stated that it was important for the workers to be well-motivated and their demands properly addressed to create a conducive atmosphere for the legislature to perform its duties.

    The Senate President and Speaker noted that the demands of the workers are part of the responsibilities of the National Assembly’s Management and that the grievances of the workers should not be allowed to linger.

  • I did not collect salary for eight years as governor, says Aregbesola

    The outgoing Governor of Osun State, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, yesterday said that he did not earn salaries throughout the eight years of his administration.

    Speaking during an interactive programme tagged ‘Ogbeni Till Day Break’, the governor who is handing over to his successor Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola on November 27, said since it was the state that was feeding him, fuelling his cars and provided him with accommodation, there was no need for him to be paid.

    Aregbesola also said that he did not have bank accounts where money was kept in any part of the world.

    He said, “I have not collected salaries since I became the governor of the state. The state feeds me, fuels my car and provided me accommodation. With all these, I don’t need money. I have no money and bank account anywhere.

    “I have no house except the one I built before I became the governor. Anyone can go out there to investigate if I have bank accounts.”

    He said he would vacate the government house tomorrow adding that the decision to leave the government house earlier was to give his successor enough time to do necessary renovations.

    When asked what his regrets were as a governor in the last eight years, he said he had no regrets.

    He said, “If you give me another four years to rule again, I will still do what I did before and I will not do anything differently.”

    On his next political plans after office, Aregbesola said he was going to rest for awhile from politics.

    “I have been in politics since my secondary school days. I have been an absentee husband for many years because of politics but for now, I want to be with my wife,” Aregbesola said.

    On his achievements, the governor said he was happy that his social investment programmes supported and transformed the lives of the people in the state.

    He also said that the infrastructure development his administration embarked upon would continue to be a reference point in the state, adding that all the roads he built would last for the next 50 years.

    Aregbesola, however described his successor as a silent achiever and a goal-getter expected to build on his legacies.

    He said “Oyetola is not radical like me but he is a silent achiever. He contributed immensely to the success of my administration and I know he will do well in office.”

  • 1000 Niger political appointees’ July salary delayed

    Crisis may be looming in Niger State over the delay in the payment of July salary of political appointees and large-scale irregularities in the payment of civil servants in the state.

    In the state, workers are usually paid on or before the 25th of the month.

    This July, however, over 1000 political appointees are in a fix, as they are yet to know when their salary for the month would be paid.

    One week after other workers got their pay, the political appointees were unsure when they too would receive their cheques.

    The Nation learnt that only civil servants and Commissioners have been paid while the others are left in the dark.

    It was also discovered that there were a lot of discrepancies in the payment of July salary, which shot up the wage bill by N18 million above the June salary. Some civil servants also had their salaries slashed by as much as 50 percent while others had triple of their salaries.

    Investigations carried out by The Nation revealed that the irregularities in salary payment were as a result of mass redeployment of salary officers in the Ministry of Finance due to some alleged irregularities in the wage bill of the state.

    It was learnt that Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello had complained during a state Executive Council Meeting over the increasing wage bill of the state; the Governor had observed that despite civil servants retiring and some deaths, the wage bill keeps increasing and does not go down especially as there had been no major recruitment.

    It was learnt that the explanation given to the Governor was that the number of political appointees kept increasing, to this end, the executive council directed a fresh screening exercise of political appointees to ascertain the actual number of political appointees in the state was carried out in June.

    The Nation also learnt that the executive council directed that all the personnel of the salary section of the Ministry of Finance, except its Director be swapped and sent to the Inspectorate section of the Ministry while new set of people were brought into the salary office.

    Findings within the ministry revealed that the delay in payment of salaries of political appointees and other irregularities were due to inability of the newly swapped officers to understand the rudiments and technicalities involved in preparing the salaries.

    It was gathered that the new officers ran into problem when former salary officers who felt wrongly and unjustly accused distance themselves from the new officers in preparing the July salary.

    One of them who pleaded anonymity told our reporter that if any of them was found wanting, they should bring out the wrong person instead of mass swapping, thereby sending a wrong signal of unwholesome practice by all them.

    The change of salary officers was confirmed when The Nation visited the Ministry of Finance, only new faces were seen and when asked for some of the old officers, our Reporter was simply told that the officers have been transferred but gave no reason why.

    When The Nation tried to speak with the Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Mohammed Saudauki, he directed her to the Commissioner of Finance, Haliru who was said to be out of the state.

    The State Commissioner of Finance, Honorable Honorable Zakari Abubakar who confirmed the transfers to The Nation asserted that it is part of a general routine stating that transfers occurs regularly, “and in sensitive places as such, you do not leave people in a position for too long.”

    He was silent on the N18 million increments in the July wage bill, stating that the irregularities in the payment of salaries are being addressed while those who have not been paid would soon be paid.

    “We asked all accounting officers to submit the names of the staff in their various MDAs and gave them a deadline. In order to ginger them, we decided to pay the various ministries, departments and agencies that had forwarded theirs and have been cleared. Others would be paid as soon as they are cleared.”