The refusal of several senior officials within the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to retire after reaching their mandatory service years has sparked controversy, leading the House of Representatives Committee on Public Petitions to summon the Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi.
The Customs boss is expected to appear before the committee next Tuesday to explain the situation regarding alleged tenure extensions of high-ranking officers.
According to a statement by Chooks Oko, Media Head of the Public Petitions Committee, the House is acting on a petition filed by the Obasi-Pherson Help Foundation.
The petition alleges that certain Assistant Comptrollers and Comptrollers have refused to leave their positions despite reaching their due retirement dates.
The affected officers are identified as Assistant Comptrollers Imam, Umar, and Egwu, along with Comptrollers Awe, Fatia, and Faith.
The House insists that the Comptroller General has a duty to clarify the matter, as Nigerians deserve to know the truth.
Committee Chairman Mike Etaba stressed that lawmakers are committed to ensuring that government agencies operate efficiently and in compliance with the law.
He pointed out that, at a time when many young Nigerians are struggling to find employment, it is unacceptable for senior officials to hold onto positions they are legally required to vacate.
While reaffirming the committee’s commitment to fairness, Etaba assured that every case is treated on its own merit, with justice always prioritized.
In a related development, the committee has also issued a stern warning to the Director General of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), threatening to order her arrest if she fails to appear before them.
The controversy involves a petition from Truid Limited, a private firm that accuses the NIMC of breaching a software license agreement.
According to E. R. Opara, counsel for Truid Limited, the company funded, developed, and deployed a tokenization system for NIMC at no cost to the commission.
Under the agreement, Truid was to recover its investment through service provider patronage, with proceeds shared according to a pre-agreed ratio over ten years, starting in 2021.
However, the petition claims that the new NIMC Director General has sought to terminate the agreement, disrupting the company's financial expectations.
Etaba expressed frustration over the continuous absence of the NIMC DG despite multiple invitations.
He warned that if she fails to appear at the next hearing, the committee will have no choice but to request the Inspector General of Police to compel her attendance.
He criticized what he described as a growing trend of government officials disregarding legislative summons, vowing that such behavior would no longer be tolerated.
Meanwhile, similar cases of tenure extension have been reported in the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), where several senior officers have resisted retirement despite reaching the mandatory age of 60 or completing 35 years of service.
Some officers have reportedly challenged the Police Service Commission’s (PSC) retirement directive, citing the extension of Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun’s tenure as a precedent.
In response, the NPF has taken steps to enforce retirements, particularly for officers implicated in age falsification and other misconducts aimed at prolonging their service.
A directive has been issued for the full implementation of PSC’s decisions, ensuring that officers due for retirement vacate their positions.
The Force Disciplinary Committee (FDC) has also been convened to address cases of officers exceeding service limits, with recommendations expected to include the recovery of salaries and allowances obtained beyond official retirement dates.
The ongoing controversies have heightened tensions within the security sector, with affected officers arguing that if the IGP’s tenure could be extended, similar considerations should apply to them.
The coming weeks will determine whether these contentious retirement battles lead to policy reforms or further conflicts within Nigeria’s law enforcement agencies.
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