Head of Service of the Federation, Dr. Folashade Esan, made accusations against Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) Desk Officers in Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) for engaging in fraudulent recruitment practices.
Dr. Esan revealed this during an investigative hearing conducted by the Ad-hoc Committee, chaired by Hon. Yusuf Gagdi (APC-Plateau), which is currently looking into job racketeering in MDAs and the mismanagement of IPPIS.
Mrs. Esan denied the allegations of collecting 10 percent of employment slots across all MDAs. However, she confirmed that many MDAs had violated waivers granted for employment exercises, which raised concerns about fraudulent activities.
In an effort to address and prevent these malpractices, she informed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) about the matter, seeking to hold those responsible accountable. Additionally, she took immediate disciplinary action against the implicated officers, leading to the punishment of several individuals involved in such activities.
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“Many Agencies have violated waiver and we have discovered that some IPPIS staff are perpetrating evil in the MDAs. Once we discover foul play in the enrollment we inform ICPC and start disciplinary measures against those officers. “
“We have several officers that we have discipline for perpetrating fraud in MDAs.”
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While responding to a question on the 10 percent of employment allegedly collected across the MDAs, she said: “I want to categorically state that the Head of Service of the Federation renders service to MDAs and we do not request such percentage from any MDAs.
“The first time I heard it, I asked the Director in charge that I must not hear such a thing any longer and that if they are doing it before I came, it must not happen again.”
On the issue of waiver for employment, Mrs. Esan said she often goes round to monitor such, adding that though the HoSF could not be in every establishment but it ensures proper monitoring
“All we do is to monitor to ensure they have not exceeded waiver. We ensure that IPPIS does not enroll unless they have approval from the Federal Character Commission, HoSF, and the Budget office,” she explained.
Mrs. Folashade Esan pointed out that certain MDAs had a tendency to exceed the employment waivers given to them. However, she emphasized that the Head of Service of the Federation (HoSF) had implemented measures to make it challenging for these MDAs to be enrolled in the IPPIS system, as a way to curb such practices.
Regarding universities, Mrs. Esan revealed that when waivers were granted for their recruitment, it was often observed that they prioritized non-academic staff over academic staff. The National University Commission (NUC) also acknowledged that this issue was becoming a significant concern.