ABUJA, Nigeria – The House of Representatives ad-hoc committee investigating allegations of job racketeering and the misuse of IPPIS by Federal Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, MDAs, has alleged that MDAs intentionally secure waivers to bypass the requirement of advertising job vacancies.
They claim this enables the MDAs to indulge in racketeering and fraudulent activities.
Yusuf Adamu, the committee’s Chairman, disclosed this concern after the Energy Commission of Nigeria’s, ECN, admission that they recruited 214 employees in 2019 without advertising the roles.
The ECN justified their actions, saying they had obtained waivers from the Federal Character Commission and did so to avoid being inundated by too many applicants.
Gagdi criticized the practice, pointing out the under-representation of certain states in such recruitments.
He argued that the process deprives qualified Nigerians of employment opportunities.
“Waiver is synonymous with fraud. Many MDAs use this system to sell jobs to the highest bidder, depriving genuinely qualified candidates of opportunities,” Gagdi remarked.
Gagdi questioned the ethics of the system, suggesting that slots are often divided among various stakeholders, which defeats the purpose of fair recruitment.
He challenged agencies to produce evidence of vacancy advertisements to validate their recruitment processes.
In response, the acting Director-General of ECN, Joseph Sunday, stated that they tried to adhere to the federal character principle in their hiring processes.
However, he admitted that some states were sidelined in their most recent recruitment, promising to address such disparities in the future.
Federal Fiasco: Commission Chairman’s Alleged N75 Million Jobs Racket Stirs National Outrage
Haruna Kolo, the ex-IPPIS desk officer at the Federal Character Commission, FCC, during a House of Representative ad hoc committee hearing on Monday, August 7, 2023, has revealed collecting a whopping sum of N75 million from job seekers.
He claims he acted on the instructions of FCC’s chairperson, Farida Dankaka.
According to Kolo, Dankaka directed him to deposit these funds into his personal account and later hand over the cash to her during multiple meetings at her residence.
The House of Representative ad hoc committee is currently investigating the alleged mismanagement of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, IPPIS, by various federal MDAs, parastatals, and tertiary institutions.
Kolo disclosed his resignation from FCC in 2022, transitioning to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria, AMCON.
Still, he received a salary from FCC even after his resignation. When he notified the HR officer at FCC about the unexpected payments, he was casually informed that it would be handled.
Further shedding light on the shady dealings, Kolo remarked, “Shehu, an associate to Taraba State’s commissioner, introduced those who paid substantial sums into my account for jobs. Payments ranged from N1 million to N1.5 million. Following Dankaka’s directive, I gave her the cash using POS, leaving no electronic evidence of the transaction.”
He also refuted the accusations of simultaneously holding seven jobs, attributing such claims to mere assumptions.
This revelation has added a new dimension to the ongoing investigations into the mismanagement of the IPPIS.
The committee is expected to delve deeper into these claims to uncover the full extent of the malpractice within the FCC and other institutions.
