Two Nigerians - Habib Garba and Amos Douglas, have petitioned the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, accusing the Assistant Director of Finance at the Upper Benue River Basin Development Authority (UBRDA), Yola, Adamawa State, Mr. Abubakar Tela Sulaiman, of abuse of office, compromise and massive fraudulent perversion of the standard of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).
Garba and Douglas in separate petitions filed before the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation in August said that Sulaiman had become so powerful to the extent that he had pocketed his immediate boss, the Executive Director of Finance and also the Managing Director of the Authority “who also benefits from his largesse”.
Garba in his petition said, “One major area of concern is a situation where Mr. Sulaiman Abubakar Tela singly paid only himself a salary arrears with a net figure of N372,648.42 in December 2021 while denying over 120 staff having their salary arrears in the same year and also included himself in another round of payment on January 21, 2022, for the same purpose, the sum of N8,370,000 to his First Bank account with number 2012065215 and IPPIS NO: 260535.
“This recklessness resulted in staff promotion arrears of 2022 not paid till date. His cronies who are staff under him also benefited from divers unmerited amounts on 21/01/2022 Description: RR/IPPIS/FGN UBRABDA/20 as captured as follows: Sulaiman Abubakar Tela - N8,370,000; Samson Sunday Makama - N7,440,000; Sabo Kwale Patrick - N7,440,000; Jigo Uba Ammar - N5,580,000 and Isaiah Helda - N5,580,000.
“All the officers mentioned above are the Authority's IPPIS desk officers enriching themselves through the IPPIS platform.
“The mastermind behind the infiltration of the payment platform has perfected his art only due to the presence of a mole at the IPPIS, and it is only when a comprehensive investigation is launched the ally can be figured out so that he can also face the full wrath of the law.”
The petitioner alleged that as far as the Upper River Basin Authority in Yola, Adamawa State is concerned, the words of Mr. Sulaiman are law as he has allegedly blackmailed senior staff members of the Authority into obeying all he says.
He alleged that some management staff members of the Authority he identified as Mr Abubakar Muazu, Engr. Ahmed Tukur, Mr Simon Mathias Tizhe and Engr Ali Buba Pela, who according to him, are on consolidated salaries, received promotion arrears “which is against the civil service rules”.
“A recall of his (Abubakar Tela Suleiman) secret file will reveal that the officer in question manipulated his steps to be at the same step with his seniors: Hajiya Zainab.M. Tukur, Abubakar H. Joda, Ibrahim Adamu Mohmmed and Engr. Ibrahim Bello etc., who were initially two steps ahead of him,” Garba added.
Corroborating Garba’s claim, Douglas also said in part of his petition that “Mr. Sulaiman Abubakar Tela singly paid only himself salary arrears with a net figure of N372,648.82 in December 2021 while denying over 120 staff their salary arrears in the same year”.
“And went ahead to include himself in another round of payment on 21st January, 2022, for the same purpose the sum of N8,370,000.00 to his First Bank account with number 2012065215 and IPPIS NO: 260535. This recklessness resulted in piling up of staff promotion arrears of 2022 not paid till date,” the petitioner further alleged.
Responding to the petition, the Federal Ministry of Water Resources said that it had set up a fact-finding committee to investigate the allegations against the UBRDA Assistant Director of Finance and some other staff members of the Authority in Yola.