EFCC OPERATIVES PROTEST OVER ALLOWANCES, PROMOTIONS

Some operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have protested the non-payment of allowances and wrongful deductions.

The staff, who describe themselves as Regular operatives (detectives that are not police officers), in a petition to the Chairman of the Commission Ibrahim Lamorde, claimed that the management has failed to pay them their 2012 hazard and incentives allowances.

They also alluded to a fraudulent deduction of 2011 upfront allowances paid by the past administration as well as lack of promotion.

The petitions claims: “the 2012 hazard and incentives allowances were not paid to the staff of the commission based on the claims that the two allowances were used to upset the 2011 upfront allowances paid to the commission by the past administration, which is fraudulent because up till now there is no explanation from management with regards to how the deducted money was retired to the Federation Account.”

They also claimed that promotion of officers has been put on hold for quite some time on the claims that there is no money to pay officers if they are promoted.

“The management engages in seconding large number of police officers to the commission instead of recruiting more young regular operatives of different cadres which is less expensive and will also enhance the progress of the commission,” they said.

They appealed to the chairman to return all seconded police officers who have over stayed the stipulated four years period.

“Please sir save the commission from the hands of seconded police officers gives chance to young EFCC operatives who are ready to fight corruption,” they appealed to the chairman.

Daily Trust gathered that only about 10 percent of hazard allowance was paid to the staff in December 2012. Sources also complained that there are police officers who have been on secondment in the commission since its inception and are still there.

The petition had been copied to the Senate Committees on Drugs Narcotics and Financial Crimes; Employment, Labour and Productivity; Federal Character; the Federal Civil Service Commission; and the Attorney General of the Federation.

When contacted, the EFCC spokesman Wilson Uwujaren, asked for the questions to be sent to his email account, but has not responded to the questions. When contacted again, he promised that the commission would send written response, but this had not been done until the week ran out.

However, a senior regular operative in the commission, who does not want his name in print, countered that, since the inception of the current leadership, EFCC allowances and wages conform to the existing rules regulating wages of federal government agencies.

He also claimed that promotion of regular staffs is being addressed by the management as notices have been posted announcing the commencement of promotion exams this February.

Source: Daily Trust