Two Witnesses of job racketeering in the Federal Character Commission, FCC have confirmed they paid millions of Naira into the account of Mr. Haruna Kolo for employment.
The victims; Mr Abdulmalik Ahmed and Ali Yaro both told the Ad-hoc committee during its hearing in Abuja that they paid N1 million and N2 million respectively for job placement in the commission.
The duo were on Monday summoned to appear before the Committee when it was discovered that their names featured on transfers made into the Banks account of one Haruna Kolo who had earlier appeared before the Committee and admitted to taking money for employment on behalf of the Executive Commissioner of the Commission, Mrs. Muheebat Kaka.
On his part, Ahmed said he met the driver of the Commissioner, representing Taraba, Mr Yisha’u Gambo who promised to get him a job in FCC on the condition that he paid the sum of N1 million.
He however said he refused to pay the money because Yisha’u was an ordinary driver, stressing that it was then he introduced Mr Harunu Kolo, a former staff of FCC and the desk officer of IPPIS in the commission.
Ahmed said that 27 of them were issued appointment letters having paid the requested money and that even though appointment letters were issued, they were not posted to any designated MDAs.
“The Head of Human Resources in FCC confirmed to us that our appointments were genuine before they cleverly took it from us. I was engaged for two years before I was disengaged without posting,” he said
The victim said; “Contrary to information from the Commission that there was no recruitment since 2017, there was recruitment in 2021 and all the commissioners had a hand in the recruitment.
“The commissioners have candidates ditto the Directors, so Kolo convinced me to pay so that our employment can follow that of Directors and the Commissioners to be posted together.”
Ahmed appealed to the committee to help get his job back.
He noted that he was not satisfied with receiving a salary without doing the required job.
Similarly, another victim, Mr. Ali Yaro, said that he paid N2 million to secure a job at FCC.
“I paid N2 million to Badamasi Jalo’s account, another victim but acting as an agent to collect money for Kolo,” Mr. Yaro said.
He said that Mr. Kolo and Badamasi both told him that he would get his appointment letter in January, stressing that he was captured on IPPIS on August 5th, 2021 but never got placement.
The Chairman of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee, Yusuf Gagdi, empathised with the victims.
He said that he was happy that the victims made good choices of being patriotic.
Gagdi re-invited Kolo to appear before the committee on Aug 9, adding that the driver to Taraba Commissioner and the Secretary should appear alongside Kolo.
The House of Representative Ad-hoc Committee is Investigating the Federal Ministries, Departments, and Agencies ( MDAs) Parastatals and Tertiary Institutions On Mismanagement Personel Recruitment, Employment Racketeering, and Gross Mismanagement of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, (IPPIS).
Mercy Chukwudiebere
