- Committee recommends termination of 706 ‘illegal’ appointments
- Acting Chief Judge promises immediate action
BY VICTOR BUORO – A total of 268 ghost workers have been discovered on the payroll of Kogi State High Court by the Staff Verification Committee established by the State Acting Chief Judge (CJ), Justice Josiah Majebi to probe its nominal roll
Also, the committee uncovered 706 illegally recruited staff on the payroll of the state judiciary and recommended the termination of all ‘illegal’ appointments into the services of the Kogi State judiciary, between January 2021 and June 2022.
These facts were disclosed by the Probe panel Chairman, Justice Mohammed Etsu Umar while presenting his Committee’s report to the Acting Chief Judge (CJ) at the judiciary headquarters in Lokoja, the state capital
Justice Umar, who noted that the recruitment scam led to an ‘astronomical’ increase in personnel emoluments, representing a 40 percent increase in personnel cost, said in the report; “After a careful check of the names of newly-employed staff from January 2021 to June 2022, the staff disposition list and payroll, it was discovered that some of the names on the payroll could not be found on the staff disposition list of the courts and other departments.”
The report further said; “Therefore, it is an indication that though their names are on the payroll, they do not have duty stations and do not work anywhere in the inspectorate offices. It is our recommendation that it is an abnormality for staff to be on payroll without a duty station. Such situation should be immediately corrected by the termination of employment of such persons affected.”
Similarly, the Committee recommended that “henceforth, employment (by the institution) should be highly regulated to the needs of the judiciary establishment and based on budgetary provisions and availability of vacancies.”
In his response, the Chief Judge, Justice Majebi, lauded the Committee members for doing a thorough job, saying the assignment would be a continuous one as part of conscious efforts at routine scrutiny of the High Court payroll and entire judiciary to safeguard staff welfare with the utmost empathy and due process.
He assured that diligence in Staff recruitment and administration would remain the cardinal goal of his stewardship as the state Acting Chief Judge, pledging to implement the recommendations of the Committee without delay in order to bring sanity and discipline to the state judicial service for efficiency in the State judicial system.
Speaking further, Justice Majebi said; “I am being guided by the three principles of showing love and being concerned with the problems and happiness of the people I lead. And when I assumed office, I said the prevailing order cannot achieve what I want to achieve.
“So, I had to joggle with the order. So, I changed the DPM and, I have always invited the Judiciary workers union (JUSUN) Chairman to be part of what we do because staff welfare and the interest of the system should always be our collective purpose. We cannot afford to allow the system to collapse”.
The Staff Verification Committee was set up following recommendations by the State High Court council of Judges as part of measures to rid the system of administrative malpractices.
