PS, Director, Others Suspended Over Role In Police Pension Fraud

SAN FRANCISCO, April 19, (THEWILL) – Five federal civil servants have been suspended from service for their alleged role in the Police pension fraud, where over N24 billion was siphoned from the coffers of the federal government.

The personnel named include Atiku Abubakar Kigo (Permanent Secretary), Ahmed Inuwa Wada (a Director), John Yakubu Yusuf (an Assistant Director), Veronica Onyegbula (Cashier) and Sani Habila Zira (an ICT Officer).

Their suspension which takes effective from March 29, 2012, was approved by the Federal Civil Service Commission, according to a release Thursday from Tope Ajakaiye, the Deputy Director Press and Public Relations, Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.

The officers have been charged by the EFCC over the alleged fraud and are presently out of state custody after they posted bail.

They are accused of using fictitious names to siphon more than N24 billion from the police pension account having inflated the number of eligible pensioners from about 70, 000 to 141, 000. They just created ghost workers and made a fortune from the scam before they were busted.