Yemi Akinsuyi/
Staff of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) under the auspices of Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE) have petitioned the National Assembly and the Code of Coduct Bureau (CCB) and the Presidency over allegations of corruption and victimisation against the Registrar-General, Alhaji Garba Abubakar.
The union is appealing to the presidency to prevail on the Registrar General to stop his victimisation of its executives, rescind their transfer outside the headquarters, stop witch hunting and impending outright sack by the commission.
The staff who have already been transferred from the headquarters and likely to be sacked include Suwidi Sani Kabir transferred to Abeokuta, Didam Laraba Joel married woman transferred to Lokoja, Glen Tabak Altine also married woman transferred to Jos and Buba Yusuf Dauda transferred to Enugu, Ibrahim Musa I. Kirfi transferred to Yola. Bello Fanini transferred to P/Harcourt, Abdulkadir Y. Giade transferred to Akure while Sadiq Shehu was transferred to Ilorin.
Others include Bivan Stephen transferred to Zamfara, Labaran Sunday (Damaturu), Egbelo Perpetua Eneh (Kaduna), BABA Tanimu, Nasiru B. Dembo and Muhammad Sani Binji to Lagos, Rabe Mai’adua, IBRAHIM Isa and Umar Farouk from Kaduna to Abakaliki, Abuja and Uyo respectively; Doffi Atoshi (Calabar), Amina B. Mohammed (married woman) from Yola to Abuja, Mohammed Nainna to Umuahia, Haruna Mohammed to Awka, Abbas Abdullahi to Jalingo, Waziri Isa, and Abubakar Sarkin Fulani to Damaturu.
The union in a letter to the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari dated March 5, 2021, titled “The struggle of AUPCTRE against corrupt practices on public service with a special focus on CAC” was signed by the acting General Secretary, Musa Ukpo.
The AUPCTRE accused the Registrar General of “illegally dissolving the union executive and banning them from operating and transfer of all executives to different parts of the country to weaken the union”.
The union consequently prayed “…that Alhaji Garba Abubakar be directed to reverse his punitive transfer against CAC workers” and “be directed to respect constituted authorities”.
Another petition to the Chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal, dated January 11, 2021 titled “Petition against the Registrar-General, CAC, Alhaji Garba Abubajar on abuse of power, financial impropriety and alleged commercialisation of promotion examination in the commission” was signed by the acting Secretary General, Musa Ukpo.
The petition read “It has been discovered that the Registrar general of CAC, has used a front company called the Eminent Konsult of Centage Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos, to inflate consultant fees for tax reconciliation on FCT Abuja Payee Tax Liability for 2018 and 2019 at an exorbitant amount of N43,072,046.67 million via PV no. 131817/2595 and PV no. 181818/2596 both dated 13th August, 2020 respectively.
“There is an alleged financial impropriety with regards to the cost fees of training of board members to the tune of N63,769,5000 million. The payments were made to Major Academy Ltd of No. 22, Isyaku Avenue, off Liberia street, Kaduna State in two installments. The first was on the 13th July, 2020 with PV no. 111290/2206 where N31,023,000 million was paid while the other payment was made to same company on the 14th July, 2020 with PV no. 120368/2206 to the tune of N32,746,500 million.
“As against the provision of section 13 of the Cide of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act, LFN 2004, there are serious cases of abuse of power, some of which include: Breach of section 40 of the constitution, ILO Convention 154 (1981), 29 (1930), and sections 23-25 of Trade Union Act, LFN 2004.
“Unilateral decisions that affect staff welfare such as stagnation, alteration of promotion policies, refusal to pay staff promotion arrears of 2019 despite the availability of funds and budgetary provisions, stoppage of all staff loans schemes, including those of the cooperative societies, coercing of staff to forcefully resign their membership of the union and imposing on them the membership of another union of his choice, stoppage of union monthly deductions”
It was alleged that the promotion examinations for 2019 and 2020 in the commission were commercialized. Vacancies were not declared in Human resources and Finance departments in the appropriation year yet he filled the vacancies with his favourite against the budgetary provision, thus a breach of the appropriation act.
In a related development, the Minister of Trade and Industry “soiled his hands in the Commission contract by giving his son in law the cleaning services of CAC Jos, Ekiti, Ibadan and others (Domade Services Nigeria Limited) thus unable to call the Registrar General to order”.
Apart from causing heavy traffic gridlock thus preventing vehicular movement along the ever-busy road leading to the CAC headquarters,workers of the commission were stranded as they could not have their way into the premises of the organisation to carry out their day’s assignments.
The action of the NLC was in solidarity with its affiliate union, the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees,AUPCTRE, which had alleged wrongdoings by the CAC’s Registrar-General.
Besides accusing the CAC boss of thwarting their promotions, AUPCTRE had also accused Abubakar of indulging in divide-and-rule tactics, arbitrary transfer of union leaders, transfer of married women out of places where their spouses live, intimidation of workers against engaging in union activities among many others.
Speaking at the protest ground, NLC President, Ayuba Waba alleged that Abubakar stalled staff promotion and brought in environmental experts to fumigate the agency for N35million in view of the Covid-19 pandemic, including contracting someone to paint the Zone 5 annex office for N30,246,979.63 million.
Among other allegations raised by NLC was that the Registrar transferred married women to distant places.
Waba vowed that the protest which he said, would be for three consecutive days, would paralyse the activities of the Commission if their grievances were not addressed today.
The NLC boss alleged that the CAC’s Abubakar committed various anti-union offences, ranging from corruption, illegal redeployment of married women out of the commission, stopping staff’s promotion arrears among others.
He alleged that Abubakar brought in environmental experts to fumigate the agency for N35 million in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, including contracting someone to paint the commission’s Zone 5 Abuja annexe office for N30,246,979.63 million to Man-Mohal Global Service Limited.
Procurement of Server DL 560 GEN 1085FF for N87,307,670.31 was approved at the Commission’s tenders Board despite the fact that it is above the threshold of the Commission. It was quickly taken to the Ministerial approval after the Union raised alarm.
On his part, AUPCTRE branch chairman, Comrade Ibrahim Kirfi, alleged that the CAC boss ignored a series of actions it carried out with a view to averting the development.
According to him, different letters to him containing alleged infractions by the commission were ignored.
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