By Soni Daniel, Northern Region Editor
Almost three months after the Federal Government ordered the reinstatement of a whistleblower who reported the diversion of $229,000 and N800,000 by top officials of the Directorate for Technical Cooperation in Africa, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which supervises the agency, has employed delay tactics to forestall his recall.
The tactic being employed by the ministry involves sending the file of the sacked officer, Ntia Thompson, to the Federal Civil Service Commission, which has no direct supervisory power of a parastatal such as the DTCA. The supervision of the DTCA rests with the Office of the Civil Service of the Federation. In the exercise of that power, the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Winifred Oyo-Ita, had ordered the recall of Mr. Ntia Thompson, who blew the whistle on the scam, to be recalled in an April 5, 2017 memo addressed to the Permanent Secretary in the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
The directive was copied to the Acting President, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Minister of Finance, the Chairman of the EFCC and his ICPC counterpart. In the letter with reference No. HCSF/LU/CORR/MFA/803/72 and signed by the Permanent Secretary in charge of Public Policies and Strategies in the Office of the Head of Service, Mrs. Nuratu Batagarawa, the HoS said that it was wrong for Mr. Thompson to have been sacked by the DTCA having not violated any known civil service rule and should be recalled.
“It is important to reiterate that the HoS will not condone acts of misconduct by public servants under any guise. However, she is committed to safeguarding the policy of government on the protection of of whistleblowers and directs its full implementation by all MDAS.”
Source: http://www.vanguardngr.com
