Productivity Center Of Two Heads
The English phrase that too many cooks spoil the brunch made no sense to the immediate past Federal Minister under the immediate past Federal government of President Goodluck Jonathan and the current Permanent Secretary in the ministry of Labour when these two top officials connived and confused/misguided the then President to append his signature appointing a Director General for the National Productivity Center-an agency under the Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity only few days after a substantive Director General was appointed to fill up the vacancy that existed when the last occupant exited.
This scandal broke out on the eleventh hour prior to the exit of the last administration after the then PDP led Federal administration lost the March 2015 Presidential election.. But since governance is a continuum and since it has become increasingly intolerable for any act if impunity to be allowed to fester the task has now fallen on the current President Muhammadu Buhari led Federal Government to ask the relevant questions on why the then labour minister actively supported by the Permanent secretary who is still in service could misguided the then President Jonathan to make a second appointment only few days after a substantive Director General was sworn in by these two persons.
The Federal government needs to know why these corrupt tendencies were allowed to go on thereby painting Nigeria as a criminal entity whereby anything unholy goes on without repercussions. It is hoped that what just happened in the Nigerian Immigration Service with regards to the suspension of the Comptroller General for alleged illegal employments would become a reference point to guide President Buhari and galvanize him into adopting swift action against the former or current public officials that connived to disgrace Nigeria by having two Nigerians appointed at the same time to head only but one public office. The HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has already sent two strong worded letters to President Buhari on this widening scandal with prayers that a solution be found and for the alleged offending top government officials to be appropriately sanctioned or prosecuted. In one of the letters the human rights group stated as follows:
Recall that we had earlier written on behalf of our teeming members, we bring you our felicitations on your recent election and inauguration as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This second and updated letter is to once more appeal for your swift directive to the relevant governmental agencies including the Head of Service, the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the security and law enforcement authorities on the need to investigate this allegation of wrong doing by the immediate past labour and productivity minister which has further been expanded in severity by the current permanent Secretary of the Labour ministry who has further stoked more fire to the raging controversy by issuing a public letter which at best could be described as perpetuation of impunity which should be overturned immediately by your good self.
The group continued thus: We hereby write to draw your attention to the manifest illegality and rascality that allegedly happened at the twilight of the immediate past government specifically at the National Productivity Center, which is one of the agencies under the Federal Ministry of Labour and productivity.
HURIWA also told President Buhari that; Sir, we wish to state that the principal character immediate past Labour and productivity minister that may have perpetrated this illegality of appointing and superimposing a Director General through subterfuge and deception within a week of the appointment by the President conveyed in an earlier letter endorsed by the immediate past secretary to the Government of the federation to another citizen by name Dr. Faith Owabhel Robert, indeed committed an illegality that amounted to an attempt to ridicule the international image of Nigeria and this singular act has further graphically presented Nigeria as a rogue state. We pray you to reverse this illegality to prove doubting Thomas's including saboteurs that Nigeria can indeed be administered with the greatest respect to the principle of rule of law and in compliance with the constitution.
HURIWA said they were writing Mr President this letter of protest and a clarion call to order the immediate prosecutorial sanction of all the characters involved particularly the immediate past labor and productivity minister Senator Joel Ikenya in order to serve as strong deterrent and to further affirm the impression that you are a strict disciplinarian who wouldn’t condone illegality. This scandalous backyard appointment of another DG at the National Productivity Center is already generating bad blood and indeed serving as the immediate cause of the widespread bad newspaper report that as can be read from This day Newspaper of June 12th 2015 in a news report titled "TWO DGS EMERGE AT NATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY CENTER". Mr. President you will agree with us that this messy scandal is not good for our corporate image.
As members of a pro-transparency platform, HURIWA informed the Presidency that there members are saddened by the reported breach of bureaucratic order as represented by the act of duplicating an appointment to the position of Director General of the National Productivity Center as allegedly carried out by the immediate past minister of labour and productivity even when information made available to us by credible and indeed independent sources goes to show that he the former minister was in the know of the earlier appointment made by the president and conveyed in a letter from the office of the secretary to the Government of the Federation.
HURIWA disclosed the particulars of the extensive scandal as follows: we were informed with documentary evidence that Dr. Faith Owabhel Robert was appointed as the Director-General, National Productivity Center, a parastatal under the Ministry of labour and productivity by the then President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR via a letter dated 15th May, 2015 with reference number SGF.6/S.11/VI/325 and signed by Anyim Pius Anyim, GCON (the then Secretary to the Government of the Federation). A photo copy of the letter is annexed herewith.
Also, the Rights group affirmed that; We also learnt further that he (Dr. Robert) resumed duty in his office on 19th May, 2015 where the hand-over the office and on the same 19th May, 2015 he met with the Permanent Secretary of the Federation Ministry of Labour and Productivity (Mr. O.C. Illoh). On the same 19th May, 2015, Dr. Robert met with the Director of Productivity, Measurement and Standard just as in company of the said Permanent Secretary and the Director of Productivity, Measurement and Standard, they went to see the then Minister of Labour and Productivity (Senator Joel Danlami Ikenya) for him to be formally introduced by the permanent secretary.
The group graphically highlighted the exact dates were some of these events happened to demonstrate that the former Minister and the Permanent secretary know a thing or two why and how two appointments were made for one office; On 20th May, 2015, he the DG (as first appointed by Mr. President) was on duty in his office while on 22nd May, 2015, he had a meeting with the Head of Departments in the Centre..
On 26th May, 2015, he had a meeting with 3 Directors and all the staff of the center. And that on the same 26th May 2015, he along with the former Director-General and two Directors (Mrs. A. Aor and Mr. Oyibo) travelled to Lagos on an official assignment to meet with the delegates of the Japanese Productivity Council to discuss on the productivity training for personnel of the center which the former Director General had made arrangement for 4 people to attend including Dr Robert in his capacity as the successor DG, the former Director General and two Directors.
Before this trip he officially wrote a letter to the then Minister through the permanent secretary for one week leave (commencing from Monday 1st June, 2015 to Friday 5th June, 2015).
Shockingly while in Lagos, he watched the news on African Independent Television (AIT) that Alhaji Kashim Yunusa Akor, a director in the Center) was appointed as the new Director-General by the Minster of Labour and Productivity (Senator Joel Danlami Ikenya), HURIWA asserted.
HURIWA said they believe that this action as allegedly carried out by the former minister of labour and productivity must not be swept under the carpets because apart from painting Nigeria in bad light internationally, it is an act of corruption which the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria of 1999 (as amended) frowns strongly against. Section 15(5) of the constitution unambiguously provides that; “The state shall abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power".
The recent letter by the permanent secretary justifying the infamy committed by the last minister in the aforementioned matter must be investigated and the permanent secretary sanctioned for this indescribable indiscretion.
RECOMMENDATION: While urging your good self and offices to remedy this damage done to the public image of Nigeria by the erstwhile labour and productivity minister, we pray you to instruct the office of the Federal Attorney General to investigate these allegations with a view to using the constitutionally guaranteed prosecutorial powers to obtain judicial sanctions for the characters involved. Enough of this impunity.
Human Rights Writers’ Association of Nigeria, (HURIWA) is a registered Non-Governmental, Non Religious and Non Political Oriented Association of Nigerian Creative Writers, Philosophers, Journalists and Humane Thinkers dedicated to deploying their creative talents to promote and protect the Human Rights of Nigerians and good Governance through constructive dialogues and media of Mass communication.
Emmanuel Onwubiko is Head of Human rights Writers association of Nigeria and blogs @ www.huriwa.blogspot..com, www.rightsassociationngr.com, www.huriwa.org.