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The Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria ASCSN has cried foul calling on the Federal Government to come to their rescue as it accuse the Executive Secretary of NHIS Prof Usman Yusuff of orphaning the scheme.
The Chairman of the union Mr. Mohammed Shehu Gaji made the appeal at the opening of an investigative public hearing of the House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee on NHIS Crisis on Thursday at the National Assembly.
He informed the Committee that the suspension of the NHIS boss was because of corruption because he has flagrantly engaged in award of contract without due process, abuse of public trust, nepotism in remuneration and posting of staff and diversion of public properties.
He said that there were several attempts by the Executive Secretary to move away N25 billion from the coffers of the NHIS in an attempt to set up his own home office without recourse to the approving authorities which was resisted by the staff of the scheme.
The union helsman also accused the Executive Secretary of awarding contracts of N46 million for maintenance another N17.5 million for capacity buliding to Lubek Nigeria Ltd a company he has a controlling interest in owned by Mr Hassan Yusuf one of his nephews
Some of the the other financial infractions of the NHIS boss as listed by him are as follows: N3.5 million for the purchase of newspapers for his office, N567 million for the payment of 7 Police orderlies.
Moreover, he also said that the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Accountant -General of the Federation had withdrawn N10 billion from the coffers of the agency.
Other allegations against the NHIS boss include diversion of 8 digital cameras, 4 security saves, 2 refrigerators, 8 vision cameras, 1.5 KVA inverter with batteries, 5 wireless mouse, HP desktop computers and stabilizers.
Earlier the Chairperson of the Board of the NHIS Mrs Ifenne Eyannetu told the Committee that the scheme was established by the NHIS Act 1999 to protect to protect families from creeping financial crisis.
She stated that the suspension of the NHIS boss by the governing board was because it believed that the agency must exercise transparency and accountability.
She added that there were many issues that led the board to take the suspension decision namely the financial infractions of the NHIS boss which were queried by the board, the padding of the 2018 budget of the agency and lastly the nepotism in terms of posting and remuneration of the workers.
She also said that in 2015,the sum of N508 million was paid to consultants by the NHIS boss for staff training while another N48 million was expended on posting.
The board according is composed of representatives of government parastatals, and rpresentatives of NECA,NLC, HMOs and other interest groups.
The Committee thereafter demanded that the documents alleged to have been used for the staff posting be made available to it and other necessary documents to aid the investigation.
The Ad -hoc Committee Chairman Hon.Osai. N.Osai said that the House derives its power to investigate the matter in accordance with the provisions of Sec 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
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