The chairman of the Governing Board of National Business and Technical Examinations Board (NABTEB), Professor Leonard Karshima Shilgba, ha enjoined President Muhammadu Buhari not to allow some top officials of his government to compromise the ongoing fight against corruption.
Prof Shilgba made the appeal while reacting to a statement issued by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education on Monday, which purportedly dissolved the Board of NABTEB that he chairs.
Prompt News Online recalls that the Permanent Secretary had in the statement stated that the reason for the dissolution of the Governing Board was provided as follows:
“The purported suspension of the Registrar, Prof. Ifeoma Abanihe and four (4) other Directors of NABTEB has been nullified as it did not conform with due process especially in the case of the Registrar, because the Board went beyond its powers and in contravention of section 5 and Section 6 of NABTEB Act.”
But, the Board Chairman reacted to the statement thus: “I provide the content of the two sections below for fair determination by the reader:
SECTION 5:
Removal from office of member of the Board
(1) The Minister may, with the approval of the President, at any time remove any member from office, if he is of the opinion that it is not in the interest of the Board for the member to continue in office and shall notify the member in writing to that effect.
(2) Where the Board is satisfied that the continued presence on the Board of any member is not in the national interest or the interest of the Board, the Board may recommend to the Minister that the member concerned be removed from his office; and if the Minister, after making such inquiries as he considers necessary, approves of the recommendations, he may in writing declare the office of the member vacant.
Commentary: Section 5 above refers to the REMOVAL (not SUSPENSION) of a Board member. Even if the press statement is framed with the understanding of Professor Abanihe being a Board member, the 9th Governing Board fulfilled Section 5 (2) by RECOMMENDING to the Minister, not REMOVAL, but SUSPENSION to enable further investigations.
SECTION 6:
Registrar to the Board
(1) The President shall, on the recommendation of the Minister, appoint for the Board a Registrar who shall have appropriate qualifications.
(2) The Registrar shall be the chief executive of the Board and shall be responsible for the execution of the policy of the Board, and the day-to-day administration of the affairs of the Board subject to the general control of the Board.
(3) The Registrar shall hold office in the first instance for a period of four years and shall be eligible for re-appointment for one further term of four years and no more.
(4) Subject to this section, the Registrar shall hold office on such terms as to emoluments and otherwise as may be specified in his letter of appointment, and as may, from time to time, be approved by the President.
Commentary:
Again, as in commentary on Section 5 above, the Governing Board, in its letter to the Minister, recommended the SUSPENSION of the Registrar. And Section 6 (2) states that: “The Registrar shall be the chief executive of the Board and shall be responsible for the execution of the policy of the Board, and the day-to-day administration of the affairs of the Board subject to the general control of the Board.”It is our considered opinion that the cited Sections rather strengthen our legal position than weaken it.
Conclusion:
In the past three (3) months since inauguration, the Governing Board of NABTEB has taken steps to “reposition and refocus NABTEB for greater efficiency, and render its performance more responsive to the expectations of the present administration” rather than what we met on ground, where NABTEB was being run on a deficit, votes for Examination monitoring shared by greedy people, contract sums paid for no job done, contracts inflated, senior NABTEB staff owing millions of naira of unremitted Examination registration fees, staff oppressed and suspended indefinitely for years, with no closure, staff payroll raided, salaries arbitrarily deducted, external auditors bribed to cover unsavory finds, integrity of Examinations compromised, and public awareness of the agency was low. Maybe we are momentary victims of truth and uprightness,but ultimate victory is with the upright; maybe we are too uncompromising. Maybe our readiness and disposition to question expenditure of NABTEB funds, and steps being taken to stop sharp practices during Examination registration by introducing online registration and payment platforms have together threatened some entrenched interests. But, we have documents, which shall be unveiled for public scrutiny, and to interrogate the seriousness of governance in this administration. And maybe, the President’s name is just being dropped without him being aware of what is being insinuated.
Prof Shilgba, therefore, “On behalf of the Governing Board of NABTEB, I call on President Buhari to not allow his battle against corruption to be compromised by those who are in his government, but who don’t share his ideals.
Credible Governing Boards are a great firewall against the virus of corruption in public service.
“Our Governing Board is proud of its record so far, and we feel compassion for NABTEB staff who may feel cheated by the press statement signed by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education, and by the Government, if conspiracies against transparency, good, and prudence are allowed to stand, avoidably so.”
