NAN-H-34
Petition
By Mohammed Lawal
Zaria (Kaduna State), Nov. 25, 2016 (NAN) Newly employed staff of the National Teachers’ Institute (NTI), Kaduna, have petitioned the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu over the suspension of their appointments by the new NTI management.
The News Agency Nigeria (NAN) recalls that no fewer than 150 employed staff of the institute were suspended by the newly appointed Director-General of the institute, Prof. Dahuwa Garba-Azare.
A copy of the petition issued on Friday by the spokesman of NTI, Malam Tanimu Aliyu-Magaji, said the suspension had disorganised the staff.
It said: “The suspension of the 150 new staff was effected at the point of capture of their data at the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) at the office of Accountant General in Abuja.
“The suspension was allegedly on the orders of the new DG of the institute, Garba Azare,” it added.
The affected workers said they were employed by the institute, sequel to approval granted the institute for staff replacement exercise.
They said the approval had been granted by the minister of education as the final part of the process, through a letter dated March 9, with reference no. NTI/D/HME/315/127.
NAN reports that the petition was copied to the Presidency, the Secretary to Government of the Federation, Head of Civil Service, the Chairmen of Federal Character Commission, National Human Right Commission, Public Complaints Commission and the President of Nigeria Labour Congress.
They said the NTI had also secured approval for their appointments from the Federal Character Commission (FCC), through a series of correspondence between the two organisations.
According to the petitioners, representatives of the FCC were also present at their recruitment interview conducted on March 23 and 24, after which the commission issued certificates of compliance to the institute over the recruitment process.
They said it was upon receipt of the certificates that the institute issued them letters of offer of appointment, to which they had duly conveyed their acceptance.
The petitioners said: “Individual files were opened for each new staff and file number issued thereto, (both open and secured file) and staff number issued.
“Account details were collected and registration with various insurance companies duly perfected.
“Moreover, the new staff were requested to go to Treasury House (Office of the Accountant General, Abuja) for IPPIS exercise between Aug. 4 and 8, 2016. The exercise had already started with biometric capturing of some of us.
“To our utter dismay, the exercise was abruptly suspended on Aug. 5, 2016 for no reason and since then we were left to continue wallowing in financial turmoil and economic quagmire,” the petitioners added.
They expressed regret that a significant number of them are married who had already left their former places of employment.
In his reaction, the NTI Acting Registrar, Mahmoud Usman, who confirmed the suspension said the new director-general ordered suspension of the exercise because it was not included in the handing over note by his predecessor.
“The new D-G came in and the exercise took place as you rightly said in April 2016, while he was appointed on the 1st of August and resumed duty.
“In the handing over given to him, there was nothing in respect of employment.
“FCC invited us for an interactive session with the new DG. We discussed thoroughly, and FCC itself wrote us back saying that they have withdrawn whatever waiver they had given.
“So I believe when he got wind of it, he consulted with the Honourable Minister and then the D-G gave a directive that the purported exercise of the enrolment of the IPPIS should stop”, he said.
Commenting on the petition, the registrar said he was not familiar about it, adding that the institute did not receive the letter of petition.
On his part, the former DG, who is an Associate Professor, Ladan Sharehu confirmed that he had contacted the new DG over the matter and he told him that the stoppage was not from him but he would try to find out.
On why the exercise was not included in his handing over note, Sharehu explained that the exercise had already been concluded and the candidates had been employed, hence there was no need to include it in the handing over note.
“You put in a handing over note something that is ongoing and not what had already been completed.
“FCC had certified, so, as far as I am concerned, we thought it is a concluded exercise, so there was no need to include it in our handing over note.
“If I had known it is a precondition, why not? I would have included it and everything we had done in the past in the handing over note.
“Even the FCC commended the exercise, because about 32-35 states were captured across the country. To the best of my ability, I can defend this exercise anywhere,” he added.
The affected staff, however, pleaded for amicable resolution of the issue, describing it as an “illegal disengagement”. (NAN)
KLM/OSA/YEE
Edited by Shittu Obassa/Emmanuel Yashim
===============================