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UK-based Nigerian taxi driver claims he still gets paid as a civil servant in Nigeria

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A UK-based Nigerian taxi driver identified as Sabitu Adams who left the country two years ago has claimed that despite no longer working for the government, he still draws a salary from the Nigerian government.

Adams, in an interview with the BBC on Sunday, confessed that despite leaving Nigeria for the UK, he still drew a monthly salary as a junior official at a government agency back home.

Adams said he, as in the case of many others in similar situations, did not resign from his job in Nigeria.

The 36-year-old Nigerian national said despite not working with the country’s government for two years, he had continued to receive a monthly salary of N150,000, which is approximately $100 or £80, from the Nigerian government.

Adam’s confession is coming barely a week after President Bola Tinubu had directed that all civil servants drawing salaries from the government after relocating abroad should be made to refund the money.

Tinubu’s orders came following a revelation by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF), Folasade Yemi-Esan, who announced at a gathering in Abuja that the federal government had identified 1,618 ghost workers through the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS).

Yemi-Esan revealed that out of 69,308 civil servants who underwent mandatory verification, they have successfully integrated into the IPPIS.

“There are active measures to address Nigerians who have moved abroad and taken up new jobs while still on our payroll.

“The federal government is taking stringent actions, leading many to voluntarily resign after physical verifications.”

Tinubu had also vowed that the culprits’ supervisors and departmental heads would be punished for aiding and abetting the fraud while they were in charge.

However, Adams who is one of the thousands of ghost workers Yemi-Esan was referring to, dismissed Tinubu’s comments as an empty threat, saying there is such an intricate web that it would be impossible to eradicate the ghost worker syndrome.

“When I heard about the president’s directive, I smiled because I know I am doing better here – and not worried,” he said.

“To be honest I didn’t resign because I wanted to leave that door open in case I choose to go back to my job after a few years,” he confessed.

Metro

Zambia’s ruling party UPND warns against personal attacks on President Hichilema

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Zambia’s ruling party, the UPND, has warned opposition politicians and critics against personal attacks on President Hakainde Hichilema as his meekness should not be mistaken for weakness.

Secretary-General of the UPND, Batuke Imenda, who gave the warning in a statement in Lusaka on Monday, urged political opponents to always engage in mature and issue-based discourse.

Zambia Monitor reports that Imenda’s warning, was directed at the leader of Zambia Must Prosper (ZMP) party, Kelvin Bwalya Fube, whose recent remarks Imenda described as “provocative” and a “feeble attempt to mislead citizens.”

“Provocative words uttered by Kelvin Bwalya against our party and President Hichilema are a clear demonstration of naivety,” Imenda said in the statement.

He further advised Bwalya to abandon personal attacks and focus on substantial political issues.

The UPND Secretary suggested that Bwalya’s attacks stemmed from a desire for relevance amid declining political fortunes, hinting at a possible alignment with former President Edgar Lungu.

“It appears KBF is hoping that Edgar Lungu might support his embattled political career by unjustly attacking President Hichilema,” he said.

Imenda defended the President’s record, highlighting that under Hichilema’s leadership, Zambia’s democratic space had expanded compared to the previous PF administration, which he accused of stifling freedoms.

He noted that while criticism was welcome, it should not devolve into baseless attacks, warning that opposition figures should not misinterpret Hichilema’s restraint as weakness.

Imenda also criticized Bwalya for overlooking the gains in transparency and justice since the change in government, claiming that past regimes were marked by resource mismanagement and corruption.

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Following backlash, Nigerian govt withdraws treason charges against minors

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The Nigerian government has officially withdrawn the treason charges it entered against some minors who participated in the #EndBadGovernance protest that spread across the country from August 1 to the 10th.

The nation was thrown into shock on Friday when the Nigeria Police presented 76 protesters at the Federal High Court in Abuja on charges bordering on treason. Among the suspects were four minors who slumped before they could be arraigned before the court.

This caused serious uproar in the country with Nigerians condemning the government and calling for the unconditional release of the kids and the dismissal of the charges against them.

The decision to withdraw the charges against the underage accused came following a directive by President Bola Tinubu who ordered the immediate withdrawal of the charges and an in-depth investigation into what led to the arrest and detention of the minors.

Tinubu had also ordered the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, (SAN) to officially take over the case file as well as review the cases following public outcry that came with the arraignment of the minors.

The charges were finally withdrawn on Tuesday at the Federal High Court in Abuja through an application for discontinuance filled by the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Mohammed Abubakar, on behalf of the AGF.

According to Abubakar, the discontinuance application was based on provisions of sections 174(1), (b) and (c) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and 108 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA, 2015.

The DPPF also applied for further proceedings to be conducted without the presence of the minors in the courtroom, in line with provisions of Section 266(b) of the ACJA, 2015, and Section 1 of the Childs’ Rights Act.

In response, human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Fanala (SAN), who stood in for the accused as well as other defence lawyers in the matter, did not oppose the applications which promoted the judge, Justice Obiora Egwuatu, to strike out the charges, while the four affected minors were also delisted from the charge sheet.

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