COVER
IPPIS: Understanding the Position of ASUU and AGF Ahmed Idris
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By Yushau A. Shuaib
The battle of wits between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) over the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) may soon come to an end, with the recent compromise that seems to be close at hand.
Even though the Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris is being ferociously attacked by the leadership of ASUU over his insistence on the full implementation of the IPPIS across the board, the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF), where IPPIS is domiciled, is also responsible for all receipts into and payments from the Federation and Consolidated Accounts.
The IPPIS was introduced in 2007 to provide accurate and reliable data on personnel in the public service, for the purpose of budgeting for recurrent expenditures and other challenges. The scheme is a form of identity system management aimed at providing a centralised database to support personal planning and decision-making, including the automated storage of personnel records to aid staff enrolment and monitoring, as well as to prevent wastage and leakages on the basis of factual personnel records and information.
Some of the features of the IPPIS are the facts that it captures facial images and fingerprints of government employees and stores them in a digitalised data-based library, which can be accessed with authorisation from anywhere.
President Muhammadu Buhari has always been passionate about IPPIS, so much that in his 2020 budget speech, he directed that all Federal Government workers must be enlisted in the scheme.
During a presentation of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP) in September 2019, the Finance minister, Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, announced the deadline of October of the same year for all federal ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) of government to enroll their staff on the IPPIS platform. She insisted that based on a presidential directive, staff members who were not captured on the automated payroll system would not be paid their salaries.
At a meeting with vice-chancellors, registrars and bursars of federal universities at the National Universities Commission Auditorium in Abuja in June 2019, the AGF, Ahmed Idris, told these senior university officials that the centralised payroll would be prepared by individual universities but coordinated through the IPPIS, while the total management of the human resources involved also rests squarely with the universities.
At subsequent meetings with the leadership of university-based unions, including ASUU, NASU, SSANU and NAAT in the same venue, Idris assured that the IPPIS platform would accommodate all financial peculiarities pertaining to university staff, including those involving sabbaticals, visitations, honoraria and other earned allowances. He added that deductions for the National Housing Fund (NHF), National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) Check-off and other dues from staff would be remitted to the appropriate accounts when due.
While appealing to them, AGF said the university community, being the bedrock of knowledge production and the centre of reforms that has always striven for probity, transparency and accountability, towards good governance, would contribute tremendously in bringing to bear all such unique qualities in the implementation of IPPIS.
In his remarks during the meetings, the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the host, Professor Abubakar Rasheed said the IPPIS scheme would engender transparency, accountability and probity in government expenditure, as well as centralise the payroll systems that would address challenges affecting the country’s public universities.
The ASUU president, Professor Biodun Ogunyemi, at one of the meetings, expressed the fear that if implemented, IPPIS could erode university autonomy and the powers of University Councils.
Possibly what provoked the anger of lecturers with the AGF was when he allegedly issued a letter dated December 2, 2019, advising vice-chancellors that universities which were not yet enrolled on the IPPIS should do so promptly or face appropriate sanctions.
Many ASUU members appeared very furious with the threat. In a reaction, Professor Deji Omole, the ASUU chairman at the University of Ibadan, said it was unfortunate that vice-chancellors had now become errand boys who were being threatened by “an account clerk”.
Meanwhile, in rejecting IPPIS, Professor Ogunyemi considered it wrong for universities to adopt a payment platform that was not designed for the peculiarities of their system. According to him, the platform does not recognise the negotiated agreements that had been reached on allowances that were not academic in nature, and those relating to research journals, among others.
Some lecturers also pointed out that IPPIS is a one-line salary scale, in which taxes are even being deducted from allowances. As an alternative to IPPIS, ASUU produced and recommended the adoption of the University Transparency Account System (UTAS), regarded as a robust software solution that would be sensitive to the uniqueness of the university system in addressing personnel information and payment system, among other things.
It is gathered that the UTAS platform has been sent to the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) for integrity tests to verify its efficacy and ascertain that the final product would pass the necessary technical requirements.
During recent closed-door meetings, the AGF appealed to ASUU executives to agree to receive their salaries through the IPPIS platform, pending when the UTAS will be ready for use after the integrity tests on it have been concluded. The Union is said to have rejected these pleas by arguing that the functionality of the IPPIS was not demonstrated to them before government started using it for workers, while equally wondering why the demands for the adoption of the UTAS became the basis for the stoppage of their salaries.
It is heart-warming that after extensive negotiations and foot-dragging, the Federal Government has finally accepted the demand of ASUU that its members be exempted from the IPPIS.
Even though 697 ministries, departments and agencies of government (MDAs) and 1,139,000 staff, including those of the Nigerian Police, para-military and military establishment have been enrolled on the IPPIS as at June, the Labour Minister, Senator Chris Ngige informed the public last week, that the government has also agreed to ASUU’s demand to pay the salary arrears of its members, from February to June, through GIFMIS, the old payment platform, until UTAS is ready for use. The government equally has agreed to lift the ‘no work, no pay’ policy, which necessitated the withholding of the salaries of striking lecturers in the first place.
While I pray and hope that the impasse between the Federal Government and ASUU would be resolved as soon as possible, no matter the eventual winner in this crisis, Nigerian youths, especially the students in public universities are the big losers, wasting eight-month at home, rather than being productively engaged in their citadels of learning.
I wish the accomplishments of the AGF in the last five years will not be rubbished or trivialised by certain unresolved issues. Even though the Federal Government extended his tenure for another four years in June 2019, I believe that it is however judicious to exit a scene when the ovation is loudest, especially as the AGF will clock the age of 60 on November 25.
The record of achievements and special interventions of Ahmed Idris, a chartered accountant and certified fraud examiner, on worthy causes, are quite numerous. Under his leadership, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) successful implemented a number of far-reaching reforms in public finance management (PFM), including the introduction of the IPPIS and the treasury single account (TSA); the adoption of the International Public Sector Accounting Standard (IPSAS), the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) and the Assets Tracking Management Project (ATMP); alongside the transformation of the Federal Treasury Academy, among others.
I will appeal to the Federal Government and ASUU to place the interests of the nation and those of young Nigerian students, who have experienced a very disturbing disruption of their education so far, above all other considerations, as they move forward in ending the ongoing impasse. May the best decisions for the ultimate good of the public prevail.
Yushau A. Shuaib; www.YAShuaib.com; Wuye District, Abuja.
COVER
BOI Restates Commitment to Local Manufacturing, Job Creation
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Managing Director of the Bank of Industry (BOI), Mr Olasupo Olusi has reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to supporting local manufacturing in Nigeria.Olusi said this when he visited the GU Ebeco facility and inspected ongoing projects at the Nisa Medical and Zeberced Group at the Idu Industrial Layout, Abuja yesterday.
He expressed delight at the progress made so far at the various facilities while commending the chief executives of the organisations, urging them to do more. During the visit to the GU Ebeco, the BOI boss emphasised the importance of job creation and the need for their products to proudly bear the “Made in Nigeria” label.Olusi praised GU Ebeco’s progress over the past seven years, applauding its expansion into a national enterprise with over 1,500 employees and several facilities across the country.“I am very happy with the fact that BOI has supported this enterprise for the last seven years. It is wonderful to see that it has grown.“It employs 1,500 staff, and operates a national distribution system. We are proud of the significant role GU Ebeco is playing in the Nigerian manufacturing landscape,” he said.The BOI boss also commended the loan repayment performance of the company saying it had taken multiple facilities from the BOI. He encouraged other young entrepreneurs to stay focused, while assuring them of BOI’s commitment to supporting them and Nigeria’s industrialisation efforts.Responding Mr Ebere Uzozie, Managing Director of GU Ebeco, expressed his appreciation for the continued support from the BOI.“We are grateful for the Bank of Industry’s backing. Their loans have helped us expand and create lasting change. We now have 34 facilities, and we are debt-free.” We are optimistic the visit will mark a new chapter for the company, and will ensure further growth and partnerships that will contribute to Nigeria’s industrial future,” Uzozie said.at the Zeberced Group, its Managing Director, Mr Aydin Kurt, said that Nigeria had lots of potential and could be the future of the world.While acknowledging the country’s potential in industrialisation, he emphasised the importance of producing locally in Nigeria rather than relying on imports.Kurt also appealed for more collaboration with the BOI to promote industrialisation, create jobs and help grow the economy.“I cannot do it alone. we have to come together and create a synergy to attract different investors to come and also invest in this country.“This is our vision we have a lot to share with you, and thank you once again for visiting our corporations,” he said.Responding, the BOI managing director said that the bank was keen on infrastructure and committed to supporting industrious infrastructure.“This project is very important to us and a critical objective for the county and, in that spirit, we have decided that we will continue to support the proliferation of industrial parts across the nation.Why yours is so unique is because it has a plan for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) which is very important.“We have a mandate to support that particular segment of our economy because they are the ones that champion job creation and most of the growth of the economy is attributed to them,” Olusi said.The BOI boss thanked Zeberced Group for the opportunity while commending the groups’ vision, energy and optimism to carry the project forward.“We look forward to our partnership. Like I said, we all want to be parts and parcel of this project, we have already given you some money to implement it, and we will see how we can do more.“As you expand we will support, but you have to also show us the job creation numbers, and make sure your goods are branded made in Nigeria,” he said.The News Agency of Nigeria reports that GU Ebeco is a furniture company while Zeberced is a construction company. NANCOVER
FRSC Unveils App to Mitigate Road Crashes Impact
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By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has unveiled an app to boost efficiency and mitigate the impact of road accidents in the country.Speaking at the event yesterday in Abuja, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume explained that the app was designed to digitalize FRSC operations for effective traffic management.
The SGF who described the current rate of accidents as a great concern to the present administration, urged the FRSC management to involve stakeholders in the implementation of the app to monitor motorists and curb the excesses of FRSC officers and personnel. The Chairman, House Committee on Road Safety, Abiodun Adeshida said the National Assembly was ready to review the 2007 Federal Road Safety Corps Act for more efficient service delivery.The Kenyan Ambassador to Nigeria, Isaac Parashina said African countries have a lot to learn from the FRSC’s experience in addressing the high rate of road crashes across the continent.According to the him, Africans must come together and provide homegrown solutions to address road safety challenges.In his welcome remarks, the Corps Marshal FRSC, Shehu Mohammed stated that the innovation was part of efforts to align with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu’s administration on the use of the new technology to strengthen the commitment of road users and enhancing road safety operations.Mohammed said the corps would embark on aggressive sensitization in all motor parks and town hall meetings for stakeholders to key into the new technology.The Director-General of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Dr. Mohammed Bulama expressed confidence that the new technology would bring sanity to Nigerian roads.Dr Bulama commended FRSC management for the new operational initiative and pledged FRCN’s continued support to every program to reduce death and enhance economic activities in the country.The Acting President, National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Isa Ore said leaders in the transport sector would contribute to the success of the application in saving lives on the highway.Other stakeholders in the transport sector promised to support FRSC in enforcing traffic laws and protect lives and property on Nigerian roads.COVER
Lokpobiri Meets Shettima, Denies Involvement in Petrol Price Hike
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By David Torough, Abuja
Minister of State (Oil) Petroleum Resources Heineken Lokpobiri yesterday denied that the Federal Government is responsible for the Tuesday increase in the price of petrol, saying it is a function of deregulation.The latest hike in the price of petrol has pushed up transport fares by over 50 percent in major cities across Nigeria.
The increase implemented by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPCL) Retail Management ranges from N855 to N897 per litre, depending on the location from the previous N568-N617. Independent marketers have adjusted their prices to between N930 and N1,200 per litre of petrol.The minister denied FG’s involvement while addressing State House correspondents after a meeting with Vice President Kashim Shettima in Abuja.Shettima had summoned Lokpobiri along with the Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) Mele Kyari and the National Security Adviser Malam Nuhu Ribadu over the recent hike in the price of petrol.Lokpobiri said, “This sector is deregulated. And we believe that with the availability of products, the price will find its level.“What is important is that the product is available in the country. Between now and weekend, there will be availability of the product across the length and breadth of the country.“We believe that by the time there is availability of the product across the country, the price itself will stabilise.”Mr Ogbugo Ukoha, Executive Director, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) said regulatory efforts were geared toward stabilising supply of petrol in the country, which he said would impact positively on stability of price.Okuoha said, “The objective of the regulator is to ensure that there’s increased operating hours from all loading depots; vessels are being cleared promptly and extended hours where safety can permit truck outs as well.“More importantly also is the reinforcement of the support being given to local refinancing, because with increased production there will be higher supply, which will stabilise the price.”Despite making its product available, the Federal Government has not started lifting petrol from the Dangote Refinery.Yesterday, Dangote Group refuted the claim in the media that NNPCL is currently lifting petrol from its refinery and selling at N897 per litre.A statement signed by the Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Dangote Group, Anthony Chiejina said the company has not yet finalised any contract with NNPCL.The statement entitled, “NNPC yet to lift our petrol” reads, “Our attention has been drawn to a headline “NNPC lifts Dangote Petrol, sells at N897 per litre” published in the BusinessDay Newspapers of Wednesday, 4 September 2024.“We would like to state that NNPCL has not commenced lifting of refined Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, from our Dangote Petroleum Refinery.“Therefore, the issue of fixing the price of petrol lifted from our refinery does not arise, as we are yet to finalize our contract with NNPCL.“The PMS market is strictly regulated, which is known to all oil marketers and stakeholders in the sector, hence we cannot determine, fix, or influence the product price, which falls under the purview of relevant government authorities.“We urge the public to disregard the headline as it is misleading and does not represent the true position in this matter.“We are guaranteeing Nigerians of exceptionally high quality petroleum products that will be readily available all over the country.”