More information have emerged on the shocking suspension of the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala Usman by President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday.
TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that Usman was first appointed in 2016 following the sack of Habib Abdullahi whose second term was terminated by President Buhari few months after assuming office.
However, Usman who only got confirmation of the renewal of her five-year second term tenure in January was just few months in office when the presidential axe struck.
Findings by TNG however revealed that reasons for Usman’s suspension was not far fetched.
Impeccable sources at the Ministry of Transportation which supervises NPA hinted that there has been no love lost between the Minister, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, and Usman in recent times.
The Minister in a letter directed to President Buhari on 4th March 2021 and exclusively obtained by TNG on Friday sought presidential approval that the account and remittances of the NPA (from 2016 – 2020) that Usman took over be audited to account for gross short fall of remitted public funds.
Swiftly, President Buhari approved on March 17 that the minister should go ahead.
Confirming Usman’s suspension on Thursday, TNG source at the Transportation Ministry said:
“Yes, the MD was suspended earlier on Thursday but the minister will give full details on Friday.
“The minister and some members of staff of the ministry are presently in Jos for a programme and he is scheduled to brief the press on the issue.
“No reason was given for her suspension but I can confirm to you that she has been suspended,” he said.
Meanwhile, the president has since appointed the Director of Finance, Mohammed Koko, as acting MD while investigations into some activities of the suspended MD is on going.