Crisis Hits Nigeria Centre for Disease Control Office as D-G Allegedly Sits Tight after Tenure

Ololade Adeyanju/

There is apprehension in the Abuja head office of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), following the refusal of the Director-General (D-G), Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, to quit after the expiration of his tenure.

NewsmakersNG learnt that despite the order from the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health, Alhaji Abdullahi, who is the overall boss of the ministry in the absence of a minister, that Ihekweazu should vacate office based on the content of his appointment letter dated August 1, 2016, he has bluntly refused to obey the instruction.

A presidency source declared that the Permanent Secretary has made an official complaint against the D-G to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss Mustapha.

He said: “There is a complete loss of confidence in the D-G and the top officials no longer hold meetings with him.”

The source declared that the Presidency is already shopping for a replacement “and this will be announced soon”.

The top four directors in the agency are Dr Joshua Obasanya, Mrs Olubunmi Ojo, Mrs Nwando Mba and Mr Y.Y. Abdullahi.

There are also Deputy Directors such as Dr John Oladejo, Mrs Elsie Ilori, Dr Priscilla Ibekwe, Dr Chinwe Ochu and Dr Olufemi Ayoola.

One of the junior officials in the ministry declared: “Our D-G has vehemently refused to vacate office, despite the instruction from the Permanent Secretary.”

He said Ihekweazu assumed office on August 1, 2016, based on a letter signed by the then SGF, Babachir David Lawal.

The source added, “I remember the last meeting they had with him was about two days after the inauguration of President Muhammadu Buhari for another term on May 29.

“The D-G should have left office on May 28 but he told them that he would leave office Tuesday of the following week. Twenty four hours to the day, he called them again and announced that he would leave office the following Thursday. All of a sudden, the next thing we saw was a letter from the D-G, informing all directors, heads of departments and members of staff that he would go on one-week leave from June 13 to 21.”

The source said the paragraph ‘The prospects of what we can achieve in the next half of the year are very exciting. I look forward to more progress on this journey’ was causing ripples in the agency as it was believed that Ihekweazu did not want to vacate office, despite the expiration of his tenure.

The source alleged that the D-G “is still signing cheques and awarding contracts, backdating them to May 27”.

“There is a serious lacuna in our office. The sit-tight syndrome is already affecting our operations here. There is also the allegation of nepotism against the D-G. Since the D-G resumed from the one-week leave, I have not seen our ogas (directors) in his office. Now, we hear all kinds of rumours. There is tension everywhere. One of the ogas (directors) told me that they will not have any meeting with him. Honestly, since the Permanent Secretary advised the D-G to leave, I wonder what he is still doing in the office,” he said.

Established in 2011, the core functions of NCDC include prevention, detection and control of diseases of public health importance.

0