President Bola Tinubu has directed Nigerian civil servants who have relocated abroad but are still drawing salaries from the federal government without formally resigning to refund the money they have fraudulently collected.
Tinubu, who gave the directive in Abuja at the Award and Gala Night of the 2024 Civil Service Week, said that during his recent visit to South Africa, he kept abreast of the week's activities and was particularly struck by the revelations by the head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Dr Folasade Yemi-Esan, on employees who had relocated abroad and are still collecting salaries without formally resigning.
The president who was represented by the secretary to the government of the federation (SGF), Sen. George Akume, said it was heartening to hear that measures had been taken to address the issue, but "they must ensure those responsible are held accountable and restitution is made."
"The culprits must be made to refund the money they have fraudulently collected. Their supervisors and department heads must also be punished for aiding and abetting the fraud under their watch.
"The Nigerian Civil Service cannot just be a workplace where 'anything is possible, 'where workers violate rules without the fear of punishment or repercussion. The civil service of any nation is too important for such misconduct to take root or be tolerated.
"The civil service is the bedrock, the engine, the locomotive of government, which is necessary for the government to deliver public goods to citizens. As politicians, we are no more than drivers of the locomotives you provide," he said.
Tinubu further said that those who say that a nation is as good as its civil service are close to the truth, that they are the actual establishment that remains to pilot government affairs as we politicians come and go.
"Over the decades, successive governments initiated various National Development Plans and programs, and all relied on the Civil Service to translate such plans into high-impact programs and projects across all sectors of the nation's economy. We look to you to continue this legacy under our administration.
"Therefore, we are steadfast in our commitment to cultivating, empowering and professionalising our human capital within the Civil Service. It is imperative to foster a culture of excellence and instil confidence among our civil servants.
"Our administration acknowledges the challenges the civil service faces. I want to assure you that we are committed to ensuring the welfare and development of all civil servants to deliver optimal performance for the growth of our nation," he said.
In her keynote address earlier, Yemi-Esan said the federal government has also made modest recent interventions to improve the welfare of civil servants.
"I wish to profoundly appreciate President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for demonstrating both the will and passion for improving the welfare of the workforce through the N35,000 provisional wage award for all treasury-paid federal government workers for six months and ongoing efforts to review the minimum wage.
"It is also essential to state that the Office of the Head of Service has not been working alone. In enhancing the value proposition for civil servants, we have enjoyed the collaboration of stakeholders and partners with the public and private sectors.
"These collaborations have scaled up the level of intervention of the Reward and Recognition Scheme (R&RS) and include an Endowment Fund of N500,000 for each of the best performing civil servants from the MDAs facilitated by Private Sector Partners- the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation and presented annually at this event.
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"Also, the Federal Public Service Entrepreneurship Programme in collaboration with the Bank of Agriculture; Annual Provision of Group Life Assurance (GLA) Cover for Federal Government Employees; and Provision of Affordable Housing at single-digit Interest Rate through the Federal Integrated Staff Housing (FISH) Scheme in collaboration with the Federal Government Staff Housing Loans Board," she said.
She said that a major recent development in this area is the 116-unit FISH Housing Estate Gwagwalada, which was completed in record time and commissioned Yesterday in a landmark event. These and many more are a demonstration of the government's commitment to the welfare of its workforce. "By the grace of God, we will achieve more remarkable feats," she said.a
