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Reps wades into ASUU saga, summons labour minister, AGF, SGF, others
The Minister of Labour and Productivity, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Head of Civil service of the Federation, Accountant General of the Federation, Director General, Salaries, income and Wages Commission, Director General Budget Office, among others have summoned to appear before the House Representatives next week Thursday.
Speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria, Femi Gbajabiamila
The Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, gave the directive Thursday at the resumed fact finding meeting on strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.
In continuation of the efforts to find solutions to the lingering strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the Speaker of the House of Representatives alongside his deputy Rep. Ahmed Idris Wase and other leaders of the House on Thursday met with the Head of Service of the Federation (HoS), Mrs Folashade Yemi-Esan, the chairman of the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission, Mr. Ekpo Nta, among other government officials.
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The meeting was a follow up to an earlier one the Speaker held with ASUU officials on Tuesday, where issues related to the strike were discussed.
The outcome of Tuesday’s meeting led the House leadership to invite the Head of Service, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission, the Accountant General of the Federation, among others.
At Thursday’s meeting, NITDA told the House leadership that the Integrated Payroll Personnel Information System (IPPIS), the University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) and the University Peculiar Personnel and Payroll System (U3PS) failed its integrity tests regarding the university payroll, which the agency conducted between March and JUNE this year.
A NITDA official at the meeting told the House leadership that the government directed the agency to test UTAS in October, 2020, and that the platform failed the two integrity tests conducted on it.
He said following the first test, ASUU was asked to go back and review, which it did. Yet, the platform did not meet NITDA’s requirements the second time.
For the third time, NITDA was then asked to conduct tests on UTAS, IPPIS and U3PS, which the official said all the three platforms failed its requirements regarding the payroll system of universities.
Not satisfied with the explanation, Speaker Gbajabiamila asked if NITDA advised the government to take action on the lapses found on IPPIS, which has been in operation by government since 2011. But the NITDA official said they were not in a position to do that.
Gbajabiamila also asked if NITDA queried IPPIS platform, to which the official responded in the negative.
The Deputy Speaker Wase also expressed reservations at NITDA’s action, saying it ought to have advised government on the appropriate action to take in view of its discovery on IPPIS.
However, the Head of Service, in her explanation, said the ministry of communications and digital economy wrote her office following NITDA’s observations about IPPIS on the need to take a holistic look at the platform and that a committee was empaneled to carry out the assignment.
She also noted that IPPIS is not just a payment platform but that it also has a human resource component, which all government agencies have been directed to activate, noting that all those directly under her purview have since complied.
Also, the chairman of the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission, Mr Nta, told the House leadership that in view of the general agitation in the tertiary education sector, the agency advised the government to look at the possibility of increasing the salaries of the staff in the entire sector, comprising universities, polytechnics and colleges of education.
He said, however, that at the end of the day, the government decided to increase the salaries of lecturers in the universities by a certain percentage, while professors were considered for higher percentage.
He said he was not aware of any agreement between the Federal Government and ASUU for salary increment.
Also speaking at the meeting, the acting Accountant General of the Federation, Mr. Sylva Okolieaboh, said under no circumstance should employees dictate to their employers how they should be paid, faulting ASUU’s insistence on UTAS.
After hours of deliberations, the Speaker suggested that a further follow-up meeting with ASUU officials be held on Thursday next week, which the stakeholders subscribed to. The meeting was, therefore, adjourned to Thursday next week.
Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has questioned President Bola Tinubu’s prolonged absence from Nigeria, saying Nigerians deserve to know the President’s whereabouts amid the country’s security challenges.
Obi made the remarks on Arise TV on Thursday while discussing the President’s absence from the country and the situation surrounding other senior government officials.
According to Obi, the issue was not simply that Tinubu was outside Nigeria, but that he had remained abroad beyond the period initially announced for his trip.
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“It’s not just that he’s out of the country. He’s out of the country beyond the days he was supposed to be. Beyond the days they even said he was going for,” Obi said.
He also noted that Vice-President Kashim Shettima was outside the country, while Senate President Godswill Akpabio was also reportedly abroad and the Senate was not in session.
“The Vice President is not in the country. And I understand the Senate President is out of the country, the Senate is not in session,” he said.
Obi expressed concern about the situation against the backdrop of insecurity and recent incidents involving the deaths of suspected illegal miners in Niger State.
“We don’t need this level of rascality at this moment in time, when Nigerians are being kidnapped, being killed, things are… we need a country where we have somebody, where we have competence, capacity, and compassion,” he said.
Referring to the deaths recorded in Niger State, Obi said the presence of the country’s chief executive was particularly important during a crisis.
“Look at Niger State now, where 10 people… where some young people have died for nothing,” he said.
The former Anambra State governor argued that while there is a chain of command within government, delegation should not replace the physical presence of the country’s leader during critical situations.
“It is… the CEO being present is critical at a time of crisis. Not delegation. Yes, you have a chain of command,” Obi said.
He subsequently asked where the President was and insisted that Nigerians should be informed.
“Where is the President? Nigerians ought to know,” he said.
Obi also said that, if elected president in 2027, he would make his whereabouts publicly known whenever he travelled.
“If I travel today, I tell people where I am. When I become President, Charles, people will know where I am 24 hours,” he said
“That is public space, public office,” Obi added.
The comments come amid continuing public debate over the absence of the President and Vice-President from Nigeria.
The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) for the 2027 election, Peter Obi, has challenged the way government borrowing is accounted for, arguing that funds borrowed but not actually drawn down should not be treated as debt left behind by an administration.
Obi made the remarks during an interview on Arise TV on Thursday while explaining his position on borrowing during his tenure as governor of Anambra State.
“That is a wrong public accounting. Even if I had gone to bank and borrowed money, but I did not spend the money, you cannot call it debt I left,” Obi said.
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He illustrated his argument with a hypothetical ₦10 billion loan facility, saying that where only ₦500 million was actually drawn, it would be inaccurate to describe the entire ₦10 billion as money owed.
“They gave me a loan of 10 billion Naira, and Charles, I only drew down 500 million. You cannot say I’m owing 10 billion, because you know the amount,” he said.
The NDC candidate said such a practice would amount to improper public-sector accounting.
“That’s why I said it is not proper public sector accounting,” Obi said.
He also cited the former Director-General of the Debt Management Office, Abraham Nwankwo, whom he said served for 10 years, in support of his claim about his borrowing record as Anambra governor.
Obi recalled that Nwankwo invited him to his send-off ceremony and publicly explained why he had selected Obi as chairman of the event.
“He announced it to everybody in that party that the reason why he made me chairman is because I was the only governor in Nigeria who never came to his office for approval to borrow money,” Obi said.
Anambra Debt Controversy
Obi’s comments come against the backdrop of continuing debate over the debt profile he left behind after serving as Anambra State governor from 2006 to 2013.
The former governor has consistently defended his administration’s financial record, while figures and claims about Anambra’s debt during and after his tenure have generated public debate.
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has commenced the final phase of restoration works on the 330kV Kainji–Birnin Kebbi Transmission Line following the recent collapse of Tower T367 along the line corridor.
TCN, in an update issued on Wednesday, said significant progress had been recorded at the affected location in Yauri, where restoration activities are ongoing.
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According to the company, the collapsed transmission tower has now been completely dismantled and decommissioned, while the conductors and skywire have been properly aligned and prepared for the next stage of the restoration process.
TCN also disclosed that an Emergency Restoration System (ERS) tower has been moved to the site and is ready for installation.
The company said the installation would be followed by cable stringing and other associated works towards the restoration of the affected transmission line.
“Our engineers and technical personnel remain actively engaged at the site and are working hard to ensure a quick completion and restoration of the line.”
TCN said it remained committed to restoring normal bulk transmission as soon as possible and appealed to electricity consumers and other stakeholders affected by the incident for patience and understanding.
“TCN appreciates the patience and understanding of electricity consumers and other stakeholders affected by the incident and assures the public that every effort is being made to restore the line and consequently, normal bulk transmission as soon as possible.”
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