Immigration tragedy: Moro may appear before Senate Tuesday

THERE were indications on Sunday that the Senate Committee on Interior had invited the Minister of Interior, Mr. Abba Moro, and the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service’s, Mr. David Parradang, to appear before it on Tuesday (tomorrow) over the NIS tragic recruitment two Saturdays ago.

An aide to the Senate President, who spoke with our correspondent on the condition of anonymity, said that though there were pressures on his principal from some elders in his state to save Moro, he maintained that Mark would not interfere in the probe process.

He said Mark would subject the report of the committee to an extensive debate by the senators before demanding for votes from members to show his neutrality in the entire process.

“It is a known fact that the Interior Minister is from the same state with the Senate President but that does not mean he would not perform his legislative duties to Nigerians,” the source said.

No fewer than 19 job seekers lost their lives during stampedes that occurred in the various centres for the NIS recruitment across the country.

The Senate had directed its Committee on Interior to carry out a public investigative hearing on the tragedy.

 The Senate, presided over by the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, had equally asked the committee to submit report of its investigation within one week with a view to unveiling and recommending for prosecution those responsible for the tragedy.

The Senate outrage and resolutions followed a motion moved on the issue by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Interior, Senator Atiku Bagudu (PDP Kebbi Central), and 10 other senators on Tuesday last week.

Meanwhile, a Presidency source on Sunday told one of our correspondents in Abuja that it was already clear to the President that Moro should take responsibility for the avoidable loss of lives and embarrassment to the administration.

The source said it was based on this conviction that the President warned all ministers and heads of government departments and agencies at the last Federal Executive Council meeting, that he would not hesitate to order the arrest and prosecution of any of them under whose watch such an incident recurred.

Moro’s fate, the source said, would be decided on the President’s return from his current three-nation trip, which he started on Thursday.

However, The PUNCH again learnt on Sunday that the March 15 tragedy could have been averted if only the Ministry of Interior had not ignored a proposal by its steering committee on recruitment.

Investigations in Abuja indicated that the committee headed by the Director/Secretary of the Civil Defence, Fire, Immigration, and Prison Service Board, S.D Tapgun, had recommended that the recruitment exercise be shifted to either the last weekend in March or second week in April, 2014 for proper arrangement to be made for a successful exercise but that the ministry ignored the suggestion.

The recruitment committee proposed that N5m should be budgeted for hiring of ambulances and buying of water. It also suggested that the exercise be staggered to accommodate the huge number of applicants, but these were not heeded.

At its last meeting held on March 7, 2014, the committee reportedly raised a memo to the minister on its recommendations, but it was apparently ignored.

Further checks also revealed that the 16 committee members were drawn from the CDFIPB, NIS, Ministry of Interior, and Drexel Tech Nigeria Limited.

The membership included Tapgun, CDFIPB; Deputy Director (A&P), CDFIPB, JaeI Kpatuvvak; Asst. Director (Admin), CDFIPB, Okhamera A. I.; Asst. Director (A&P) CDFIPB, Bello Torankawa; Asst. Director (IMM) – CDFIPB, Hamid AbduII-Iamid; Asst. Director (D&GP) – CDFIPB, Aduku, M. M; and CIS (APU), NIS Oyedeji, T.V.

Others are Abubakar A. A. – interior ministry; Chukwu O. C., – Rep. Asst. Director (F&A) – CDFIPB; I. M. Makama – LA – CDFIPB; Nasiru Yusuf -ICT Unit – CDFIPB; Shehu Mohammed – Deputy Director (D &GP) – CDFIPB; Mukah O. S. -Chief Admin. Officer (FFS); Theodore Maiyaki – Drexel Tech.; Wiiiiam Butau – Drexel Tech. and Abioye Bankole – Drexei Tech.

Further investigations showed that Parradang had earlier written to the CDFIPB and kicked against the recruitment exercise.

In the letter dated September 9, 2013, a copy of which was obtained by The PUNCH, the CG protested the decision of the board to recruit personnel into the NIS without formally informing him about it.

Part of the letter read, “I wish to draw your attention to an advertisement which has just been brought to my notice, calling for application of suitably qualified persons for appointment into Categories’ ‘A’ (Superintendent Cadre) and ‘B’ (Inspectorate Cadre) of the Nigeria Immigration in today’s Daily Trust – Monday, September 9, 2013 on page seven (7)

“I wish to further state that this advertisement for employment took me by surprise and the Agency which I head  (i.e. the Nigeria Immigration Service). I am aware that the Civil Defence, Fire, Immigration and Prisons Service Board Act CAP: 12, 2004 confers Powers of Appointment on the Board, however the same Act equally delegates such powers (i.e. recruitment) to the Services — particularly recruitment into Category “B” , which has been the case up till this moment.

“The said publication or advertisement for appointment of persons into the Nigeria Immigration Service without consultation or any input whatsoever from us is to say the least, surprising and embarrassing to me. I feel NIS should be taken along in this issue regarding staff recruitment into Category “B” in particular, which is usually conducted and supervised by the Service.”

The board in its reply dated October 29, 2013 apologised for not informing the CG about the recruitment exercise and told him that the power delegated to the service had not changed.

The letter signed by Tapgun, however, said the recruitment would proceed and applications (for junior personnel) that fell under the purview of the NIS would be forwarded for action.

 Our correspondent learnt that the contract for the recruitment had been awarded to Drexel Tech by the minister, before Parradang assumed office.

PUNCHNG