Nigeria’s Federal Parliament has announced an investigation into alleged job racketeering in in the Public Service.
At the centre of the probe is the possible manipulation of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System originally introduced to eliminate ghost workers collecting salaries from the Government.
The Parliamentary Committee charged with the investigation named a number of Agencies believed to the involved, including the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, the Budget Office and the Federal Civil Service Commission (FCC).
Sources close to the investigation claimed there were persons at the FCC who were selling jobs for millions of naira.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Folashade Yemi-Esan, has alleged that some persons were forging her signature to issue recruitment letters.
Chair of the committee, Yusuf Gagdi said he had invited representatives of the Nigerian Army, Navy, Air Force and the police as well as heads of Intelligence Agencies and others to give evidence, but many of the invitees had failed to appear.
“We have uncovered irregularities and job racketeering in the Federal Civil Service, including mass failures to publically advertise jobs which then went to family members, friends and those who paid money,” Mr Gagdi (pictured) said.
He said the investigation was nowhere near its conclusion, “but we will leave no stone unturned in getting to the root of the matter”.
Abuja, 3 September 2023
