From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, has given the management of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) a January 2022 ultimatum to re-adjust its staff salary structure.
The Minister, who addressed the closing ceremony of its two-day Management Performance Review at the weekend in Abuja, also gave the agency three months to fully automate its operations.
Commending the new management of the Fund for what it termed “new focus and work friendly,” the Minister said the conduct of the new team has justified the decision of President Muhammadu Buhari to relieve the immediate past management team of their responsibilities.
He said: “When in July 2020, the President approved the suspension and later removal of the former management of the NSITF after over three years in office , the Fund’s savings was at a paltry sum of N2billion. The Acting Management, Kelly Nwagha, who bridged the gap for less than a year, moved the savings to N8billion . And in six months , the current management under Mike Akabogu has moved it to N17billion. The people they succeeded in office had only N2billion in the account but left a liability, debts of over N30billion. Is that a good management?
“ So when you hear, Ngige likes to fight . Ngige doesn’t like them because they are Yoruba , do not listen to them. I’m a nationalist. I try my best to model my practice of politics after the Great Zik of Africa. If you are working with me and you do the right thing, I don’t care where you come from.
“ I don’t hate any tribe in Nigeria. I’m a nationalist. I have worked everywhere in Nigeria. If you are good, I will spot you out and encourage you. If you are Hausa and you do well, you are my friend, Yoruba , Igbo or other tribes , the same .
“ If you are Igbo and you shun your responsibilities, I will kick you out . The same with Hausa , same with Yoruba. We are all Nigerians and I love all equally. But what I hate and will continue to fight is when people derail from their responsibilities.
“The Chairman of the Board of the NSITF , Austin Isere, a chartered accountant, chartered banker and chartered insurer is an Urhobo from Delta State. I didn’t know him . The man who brought him to me is a Yoruba man, Fola Danniel and President was pleased with his pedigree. This is the kind of Nigeria we want . When people are qualified, you give them their due.
“The best Director of Finance I have worked with in my Ministry is Ishaya Awotu from Nasarawa State. I have worked with others, even from my tribe. But Ishaya is brilliant and competent, that I keep recommending him till today for any finance and accounting jobs without blinking.
“When you hear any story, oh, Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba, don’t bandy it around me. I look for an excellent person and that’s how I operate . A lot of people hide under tribalism to cover up weaknesses and inefficiency. We can’t build Nigeria with such predilection.
“This new management is worker friendly. Unlike the politicians before them , they have not given themselves N10million for vacation with their spouses. Even though it is there in the operational manual, but I advised them it is immoral for them to do so when some staff members cannot afford house rents, that the strategic reform they set for themselves must be all-inclusive and they paid heed.
“We discovered very sadly that the NSITF has not re-adjusted staff salary but it is not the fault of this management but of preceding ones who didn’t think about the lowly placed persons. We discovered it and have given them an ultimatum to do so by the end of January 2022.”