By Tordue Salem, Abuja
The House of Representatives Committee on Federal Capital Territory has waded into the conflict arising from the delay in the appointment of the next Director of Treasury and secretaries to man departments of the FCT Administration.
Chairman of the House Committee, Rep. Abdullahi Garba(APC-Niger), has called for petitions from directors at the Ministry of FCT, VANGUARD has learnt.
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There has been tension within the ranks of directors in Federal Capital Territory Authority (FCTA) over the appointment of the next director, FCT Treasury, and the delay in the appointment of mandate secretaries to oversee various secretariats since the minister of FCT, Mohammed Musa Bello resumed for the second tenure last November.
A director in the FCTA, in a chat with VANGUARD, said the directors in the FCTA “have vowed to resist any attempt by the minister to favour a lesser candidate for the position of director, FCT Treasury”.
One of the directors who visited the National Assembly to inform members of the committees on FCT both in the Senate and in the House of Representatives noted that “an attempt by the minister to appoint one of the directors in the treasury department, Mr Damboa Malum, who was promoted to the position of director in 2018, over 16 other directors who were promoted to directorate cadre long before him, is unsettling the department”.
According to the director, the minister had hinted that the next director would be appointed after a selection examination for the directors in the department.
He, however, said, “some competent accountants who are on the directors’ level and qualified for the position, would decline participation in the planned exam, citing obvious bias”.
According to him, “the directors question the integrity of the said examination, alleging that Damboa may be unduly favored as the ‘minister’s candidate’.
“Damboa boasted severally to his family and friends that he has been assured by the minister that he is going to be appointed even though he’s not the most senior,” he alleged.
The director alleged that” the planned selection examination for candidates jostling for the position was against the convention of appointing the most senior and qualified director from the department”.
He also alleged that” the minister deliberately refused to confirm the appointment of the immediate past director, FCT Treasury, Alhaji Salawu Adigun, who retired last week, so as to prevent him (Adigun) from exercising the full powers of the director of treasury until his preferred candidate is appointed.
“When Alhaji Isyaku Ismaila retired as the director, FCT Treasury in March 2020, Alhaji Salawu Adigun Lawal took over from him without full powers of a director treasury. However, he also retired last Monday without anyone replacing him. This is unprecedented in the history of FCTA,” .
The Committee is so supposed to look into petitions to that effect, before the end of October.
Vanguard News
