Maina’s salary stopped in Feb 2013, Adeosun, Idris tell Reps

By Joshua Egbodo

Abuja

Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, and the Account-General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris, have told the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee investigating the controversial reinstatement of former Head of the Presidential Task Force on Pension Reform, Abdulrasheed Maina, into the federal civil service that, he had been off the payroll since March 2013.
According to the duo, who appeared before the committee yesterday to respond to last week’s assertion by Maina’s lawyer, Mohammed Katu, that his client was still being paid his salaries and emoluments even after his “purported dismissal” by the federal government, explained that there was no record of any name in the integrated payroll system suggesting a link or semblance to Maina.
“We do not have the biometric data of Maina in the payroll. The agency where he was dismissed from is now under PTAD (Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate). PTAD has done its biometric, and Maina’s biometric is not there,” Adeosun stated, even as she corroborated the Accountant-General’s earlier submission that he was last paid in February, 2013.
The Aliyu Madaki-led panel has, however, directed the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami, to provide his aide, one Mr. Kehinde Ogini, to answer questions on the role he played in the now disclaimed letters by the AGF, while also directing Acting Chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu, to investigate the circumstances under which the commission directed the Immigration Service to vacate Maina’s travel stop order.
Magu, who denied knowledge of the letter vacating EFCC’s travel ban order against Maina to the Immigration until yesterday, also denied that the EFCC was in possession of any recovered property or cash from the Maina-led Task Force, challenging any one with evidences of such handover to make such information public.
“All recoveries from pension fund fraud were products of independent investigation by the Commission,” he said, adding that its officers “can, therefore, not share something that was not available.”
Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Winifred Oyo-Ita, told the committee that Maina’s “reinstatement was never activated, so far as the letter was not endorsed and delivered to him,” adding that she will officially return the letter she earlier withheld, for purpose of seeking further clarifications, to the Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC).
His lawyer, when asked to tender evidences to the effect that Maina was still receiving salaries and other emoluments as alleged, however, argued that “we are talking on the premise of law.”
He explained that since there was a court judgement nullifying the query, following which he was dismissed, his client by law had been reinstated to his position, and should be paid his arrears.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Interior, Abubakar Magaji, who notified Mrs. Oyo-Ita of the decision of the FCSC to reinstate Maina, apologised for jumping the guns by relying on the FCSC’s informational letter to commence the process, rather than waiting for directive from the HOS.

Leave a Reply