Disquiet at NITDA over Employment, Sack of 245

Employment and sack of over 245 staff of the National Information Technology Agency (NITDA) is generating controversy between the affected staff and Adebayo Shittu, minister of Communications, according to Daily Trust.

The 245 staff “duly” employed in November 2015 were summarily asked to stay off work on the orders of the minister after the agency had asked them to open salary accounts and choose their pension administrators

But Barrister Shittu told Daily Trust yesterday that the staff were employed through the back door by a former NITDA Director-General.

Kabiru Abubakar Mustapha, the spokesman for the aggrieved staff, Kabiru Abubakar, said NITDA duly employed them because the agency got approval from the ministry’s former Permanent Secretary, Dr Tunji Olaopa and the Federal Character Commission (FCC) before recruiting them.

He gave Daily Trust the copies of documents showing the FCC’s purported approval of their employment.

“How can the minister say we were employed illegally when the ministry and the Federal Character Commission duly approved our employment? Why is the minister playing politics with our lives; the fact that they have problem with Peter Jack should not make us bear the brunt?” Mustapha, who was employed as a Higher Executive officer 1 on CONITSAS 8 step 2, said.

He said they had met with Dr Vincent Olatunji, acting DG of NITDA, twice but he told them only the minister could rectify their employment.

Mustapha said the minister did not show any concern when they went to him.

He disclosed that the 245 staff would stage a peaceful protest at the Federal Secretariat Abuja today to remind the authority of their problem.

“Why would the government that promised employment for youths go ahead to cancel same employment created by its own agency? The former NITDA Director- General got approval from the Ministry of Communications to recruit and the Federal Character Commission approved the employment of 245 of us who scaled through the interview hurdle”, he said.

Speaking with Daily Trust on the issue, Shittu said the government cancelled their appointments because it was hurriedly done by the immediate past NITDA DG who ahead with the recruitment despite directive to the contrary.

He said the ministry might reconsider their case after the substantive DG had been appointed at NITDA.