The Presidency says Mr Austin Enejamo-Isire is the authentic
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund
(NSITF), and will be inaugurated at Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa,
Abuja, on Monday.
The Organised Labour under the leadership of Ayuba Wabba had
allegedly accused the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige of
replacing the name of Comrade Frank Kokori with his kinsman Enejamo-Isire as chairman
of board of the NSITF.
The picketing of the minister’s residence by the labour using
two petroleum tankers to block the entrance and exit points of the house had
resulted to violent clashes between people suspected to be the minister’s
loyalists and the affected labour officials.
The labour, who vowed to ensure the inauguration of Kokori
as NSITF chairman, had called for international labour actions against the
minister over the incident.
However, a statement by Mr Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser
to the President on Media and Publicity, in Abuja on Sunday, expressed regret
over the misunderstanding between the labour and the minister on the matter.
The statement read in parts: “Following the disagreement
between the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment and the leadership of the
Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) over the appointment of the Chairman of the
board of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), the Presidency wishes
to clarify as follows:
“A. That the NSITF is a hundred percent, Federal Government
of Nigeria owned insurance parastatal, under the supervision of the Federal
Ministry of Labour and Employment, designed for the role of insuring workers
(employees) in the public and private sectors.
“The organization is empowered by law to implement the
Employee Compensation Act (ECA) 2010 with mandate to insure workers and pay
them compensation for accidents, deaths and injuries in the course of work.
“The NSITF was bedevilled and riddled with corruption
between 2012 – 2015, which resulted in a colossal loss and mismanagement of
about N48 billion out of the total N62 billion contributions during the said
period.
“These were contributions by the Employers – viz government
and the private sector for payment of compensation to workers and even to
Employers for loss of man-hours by their workers.
“This fraud has been
investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the
last Chairman and some members of the former board and some officials of the
NSITF are presently being prosecuted by the EFCC.
“All actions taken by the Honourable Minister of Labour and
Employment towards the resuscitation and repositioning of this ailing agency,
including the Administrative Panel of Inquiry into the affairs of NSITF and the
suspension of the inauguration of the board in 2018 were part of the special
work plan approved for the Honourable Minister by Mr. President.
“The appointment of the Chairman of this board, which is in
consonance with Sec. 4(a) of the NSITF Act CAP N88 of 2004 was also approved by
Mr President since 23rd July, 2018 on the recommendation of the Hon. Minister.
“Mr Austin Enejamo-Isire, a Chartered Accountant, Fellow,
Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and renowned Insurance
expert, Senior Member, Chartered Institute of Insurance of Nigeria (CIIN),
Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) and Chartered Institute of
Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) was approved by Mr President for this position.
“Also approved by Mr. President were the Managing Director
and three Executive Directors who had assumed duties since 18 April 2017.’’
The statement added that others also approved as
Non-Executive Directors were two members to represent the Nigerian Labour
Congress (NLC) and two members to represent the Nigerian Employers’ Consultative
Association (NECA).
The approval also included a member each to represent the
Central Bank of Nigeria and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.
“Members of this board are to be formally inaugurated at 9 a.m. on Monday, May 13, 2019, by the
Hon. Minister of Labour and Employment at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential
Villa, Aso Rock, Abuja,’’ it further stated.
According to the presidency, Frank Kokori has also been
appointed on the recommendation of the Minister of Labour and Employment to
chair the board of Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies
(MINILS), a diploma awarding labour
institution.
It said: “Comrade Frank Kokori, our respected veteran
labour leader has Mr. President’s
immense respect and has also been appointed on the recommendation of the
Hon. Minister of Labour and Employment to chair the board of Michael Imoudu
National Institute for Labour Studies (MINILS),
a diploma awarding labour institution.’’
The Presidency noted with deep concern and regrets, the
events that culminated in a skirmish at the private residence of the Minister
of Labour and Employment, and condemned it, in its entirety.
“However, in the spirit of reconciliation, the Presidency
appeals for calm from the NLC and the Ministry of Labour and Employment
officials.
“There are ongoing efforts to reconcile the NLC leadership
with the Ministry of Labour and Employment, led by their Minister who has
doggedly been fighting the cause of Nigerian workers whenever their issue is
discussed by government, the latest being the enactment of the new National
Minimum Wage Act 2019, the statement maintained.
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com