Saturday, September 10, 2011

Sanity Returned To Nigerian Civil service As Jonathan Reads Riot Act To Permanent Secretaries

           It was yesterday that President Goodluck Jonathan implored permanent secretaries of the federation to wield back the culture discipline into the Civil Service.
According to him, permanent secretaries were in the best position to  discipline civil servants in the day to day running of  government establishments because of their positions as the accounting officers in the ministries.
          The president who made this imploration after swearing-in two newly appointed Federal permanent secretaries at the presidential villa, Abuja expressed dismay that there was indolence in the civil service - a situation where civil servants go to work late and leave the office at will.
He illustrated his plans to pay surprise visits to ministries so as to checkmate indiscipline, saying, “One of the things we get to know is that people these days go to work whenever they wish and leave the offices whenever they want to.
“As a government, we have a period people are supposed to resume duty though, I know it does not affect permanent secretaries and ministers, you don’t have a resumption or closing time. But for normal civil servants I think resumption is 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and I believe that this must be religiously adhered to Jonathan added.
               He also added, “If for any reason an officer will leave office earlier than 4 p.m. or resume later than 8 p.m. the permanent secretary or the director in charge of that directorate must be informed. I think we must make sure that we bring back discipline into the service.
“We must begin to see how we will manage an efficient, productive civil service that will lead to the transformation of our dear country”.The President enjoined permanent secretaries, ministers, directors and other heads of government establishments to institutionalise a system where mails and memos must not stay more than 48 hours in their offices.
           The president urged  permanent secretaries, to cooperate with their ministers to ensure discipline in the service, get rid of corruption and ensure management of efficient, productive civil service that will lead to the transformation of the country.
The two  permanent secretaries sworn in yesterday are Mrs Kehinde Ajoni  from Lagos State and Mr Nebolisa Emodi, from Anambra State.
While Ajoni, a 58 year old had worked as lawyer was former Executive Secretary of the National Human Rights Commission, Emodi is an Engineer and a former Director in the Bureau of Public Procurement.
The duo has since been posted to the Career Management Office in the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF) and Ministry of Transport respectively


Ubong Edem

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

President Goodluck Jonathan Asks EFCC, AGF to Work Together


            President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday, Monday said that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) "must work in collaboration" with the office of the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation Mohammed Bello Adoke to enforce anti-corruption laws and recover looted funds abandoned in foreign accounts.
President Jonathan, who was represented by Vice President Mohammed N. Sambo, said this yesterday at the opening ceremony of the 8th National Seminar on Economics and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in Abuja.
           Better secrets gathered that President Jonathan also admitted that Nigeria still had huge stolen assets abroad yet to be noticed.
           He reiterated that his government would not protect any person from being investigated for allegations of corruption by the EFCC and other anti-corruption agencies.
The Human Rights Watch in a 64-page report chronicling the performance of EFCC since 2002 published recently said it had performed poorly due to executive interference and a political establishment that continues to reward corruption.
"We will give all the necessary support and encouragement to all the anti-corruption agencies to vigorously enforce the enabling anti-corruption laws. I urge these agencies to do their work fairly but firmly within the ambit of the law without regard to position or status. There shall be no sacred cows. This government will not protect any so-called sacred cows. The wheel of justice must run its full course in tackling anti-corruption cases.
"The private sector equally has a big role to play. There can be no successful corruption in the public sector without connivance and collaboration with the private sector consistent with current International Best Practices.
In a keynote address, the Liberian President, Mrs Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, took an historical excursion into the travails of her country, lamenting the nation's huge losses to graft and poor governance, in spite of the enormous natural resources available in the country.
Sirleaf said that through "structural and systemic reforms", she has succeeded in stirring Liberia out of "systemic and suicidal corruption level." She gave the credit to the independence of the Liberian Anti-Corruption Commission, fashioned after the EFCC and with unfettered freedom to carry out its job.
In her welcome address, Chairman of the EFCC, Mrs. Farida Waziri, described national economic and security challenges as man-made and largely traceable to corruption where a few individuals are bleeding the wealth of the nation and causing great pain to the larger society.             Waziri said the corruption of a few has caused and is causing crushing and debilitating poverty and unemployment. "This poverty has led to despair and anger which in many cases has ignited violent unrests with attendant unpleasant consequences including loss of innocent lives and property".
In his remark, Adoke, revealed that his office has taken seriously the issue of stolen assets recovery.
According to him, "this is borne out of the desire to ensure that corrupt persons are not only punished but are prevented from enjoying the proceeds of their crimes. In this regard, we have continued to assist relevant agencies to recover and repatriate stolen assets to Nigeria. Only recently, we negotiated the recovery and repatriation of the sum of 22.5 million pounds sterling from the Island of Jersey being the proceeds of money laundered from Nigeria," he said.

Friday, September 2, 2011

NEW MONTH MESSAGE


Since GOD has called, chosen, and  justified you, your glorification time is here in this new month!
Gone're the days when Princes and Princesses use to walk bare-footed on streets. Coat of many
 Colours, being a symbol of love and kingship to Joseph’ll no more be taken away.
In this new month, I pray that GOD serves as your carriage to the throne! Amen.




UBONG EDEM
The Young Investor