Our Reporter, Abuja, with Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
The Federal Civil Service Commission, has directed the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, to immediately relieve 209 staff of the Ministry of their duties, citing illegal recruitment as reason for the action.
According to a letter from the Commission to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Culture, the affected staff were recruited between 2013 and 2020.
The letter marked FC 3098/S. 203/94, and signed by the Director, Recruitment and Appointment, Ibrahim Anjugu, on behalf of the Chairman of the Commission, said that the recruitment of the affected staff was discovered to be fake after a verification exercise by the Commission.
A copy of the letter obtained by Ikengaonline read in part: “Re: Service Wide Verification Exercise conducted by the Commission for officers recruited from 2013-2020, the appointment of the following officers of your Ministry were found to be fake.”
A total of 209 various categories of staff from different parts of the country were contained in the list.
“These individuals who have been holding office illegally because their appointment letters are fake, are to be relieved of their duties, and to return any Government property/properties in their possession immediately,” the directive further read.
Fallout of whistleblowing?
Although it is not yet known if the Federal Civil Service Commission had acted with regard to similar illegal recruitment which allegedly took place in the Ministry of Works and Housing under Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola, analysts believe that the action of of the Civil Service Commission to order the sack of illegally recruited officers in the Ministry of Information may vindicate a whistleblower, Richard Oghenerhoro, who exposed similar fraudulent recruitment in the Ministry.
Recall that recently, a coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) had expressed concern over the victimisation of the whistleblower, Oghenerhoro.
The CSOs called on the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola to protect Oghenerhoro from further victimisation by some highly placed officials of the ministry.
The coalition include African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL), Progressive Impact Organisation for Community Development (PRIMORG), Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA) and Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP).
The group had noted that Oghenerhoro had been subjected to intimidation and verbal assault by some members of staff of the ministry.
According to the coalition, Oghenerhoro’s courageous act has elicited retaliation in form of punitive postings from the Appointment Unit where he uncovered the employment scam, to Open Registry and then a removal from the headquarters altogether to the Gwagwalada office as head of administration department.
“Other than his ill-advised redeployment, the whistleblower has also been continually abused and threatened by some staff who are clearly angered by a gesture aimed at achieving good conduct,” the coalition said.
It called on Fashola to reverse such punitive postings involving the whistleblower and to grant him full administrative protection in the ministry.
It described the attack on the whistleblower as reprehensible, adding that such patriotic citizen did not deserve any form of punishment either by the institution or by any person.
“The matter he reported is in the public interest and within the scope of the whistleblowing policy of the Nigerian government.
“The whistleblower is guaranteed full protection not only under Section 12 of the policy, but also under Section 27 of the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act, 2011, and Section 39(1) of the 1999 Constitution which covers his fundamental right to free expression,” it said.
The coalition noted that the only way whistleblowing as an anti-corruption policy would succeed was for whistleblowers to be protected by the law or the system put in place by government.
