Crisis Brews over Nigeria’s Accountant-General’s Retirement
The Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), Ahmed Idris, has been accused by the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) of corrupting the system by insisting to stay in office beyond his retirement age.
ASCSN alleged that the AGF has been claiming that he would not leave office because he was close to President Muhammadu Buhari.
The association therefore vowed to occupy the office of the AGF to force his retirement.
The ASCSN said in a statement on Monday it was unfortunate that despite clear provisions on retirement in the civil service, some heads of agencies continued to sit tight in their offices on spurious grounds that they had a link with Mr President and so could not be subjected to public service rules.
Secretary-General Comrade Alade Lawal, who signed the statement, said the union has mobilised its members in Abuja for the purpose of occupying the AGF’s office to force him out..
Lawal noted that Idris turned 60 years on November 25, and should have vacated office that day, but he has instead been boasting of ‘going nowhere because he was close to Mr. President who facilitated his promotion to that office and, as such, could not be subjected to guidelines on retirement in the civil service’.
The statement reads: “The Public Service Rule (PSR) 020810 states clearly that the compulsory retirement age for all grades in the service shall be 60 years or 35 years of pensionable service, whichever is earlier.
“No officer shall be allowed to remain in service after attaining the retirement age of 60 or 35 years of pensionable service whichever is earlier.
“Those parading themselves as the president’s men might just be name-droppers as President Muhammadu Buhari, a disciplined general, could not be encouraging impunity of any form. This negative report from Idris is painful and disturbing because the post of AGF is a career one, and guided by the provisions of the Public Service Rule 020810…”
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