Following blistering allegations of tribalism and clannishness
leveled against the management of the Federal Inland Revenue
Service (FIRS), its Executive Chairman, Mr Muhammad Nami has
dismissed it as total falsehood, insisting that no such thing
existed there.
The allegations indicated that recent appointments and
retirements were done along ethnic and religious lines at the
FIRS.
He said: “The FIRS wishes to clarify that the recent staff
retirement exercise which affected nine directors was done in full
compliance with the law and in the best interest of the Service and
the country, contrary to insinuations in a section of the
media.
“The Board of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) in a
meeting held on Friday, March 20, 2020 took the decision and
approved that all directors who had served in the FIRS for eight
years and above should be retired.
“The FIRS Board took that decision in line with Paragraph
10.1(a)(iii) of Human Resources Policy and Programmes (HRPP)” of
the FIRS after considering a number of career progression
complaints by some staff in the Service.
“Worthy of note is that FIRS Establishment Act, 2007, Section 7
empowers the FIRS Board to take certain far-reaching decisions in
the interest of the Service and by extension, the country”, Nami
stated in a statement.
He described the FIRS as a national institution of pride where
tribalism and ethnic jingoism has no ground to take roots, let
alone of thriving.
“The FIRS is one national institution which any Nigerian joins
and is assured of rising to the very top in the hierarchy based on
his or her individual competence and hard work on the job, and not
on the basis of any tribal or religious affiliation.”
The Executive Chairman stated: “If any FIRS worker had been a
victim of tribalism or religious discrimination in the past, I say
to such marginalized worker: Not anymore and not on my watch at the
FIRS.”
“Specifically, Section 7 (d) states that the Board shall…
“employ and determine the terms and conditions of service including
disciplinary measures of the employees of the Service”. Section
7(J) states that the Board shall “do such other things which in its
opinion are necessary to ensure the efficient/performance of the
functions of the Service under this Act”.
“It is in the discharge of such responsibilities that the Board
approved the retirement of the nine directors who had spent eight
years and above as directors as provided by the FIRS statutes.
“In doing that, the FIRS Board considered subsisting issues in
the Service which have to do with career progression. Management
had observed that there was stagnation in career progression in the
Service because some directors had served for about 10 years while
younger members of staff who also possessed requisite expertise
could not progress in their career line. Some staff had taken a
number of promotion examinations and had passed but could not be
promoted. The affected staff and the staff unions had complained to
the Management to intervene in the situation.”
Following blistering allegations of tribalism and clannishness
leveled against the management of the Federal Inland Revenue
Service (FIRS), its Executive Chairman, Mr Muhammad Nami has
dismissed it as total falsehood, insisting that no such thing
existed there.
The allegations indicated that recent appointments and
retirements were done along ethnic and religious lines at the
FIRS.
He said: “The FIRS wishes to clarify that the recent staff
retirement exercise which affected nine directors was done in full
compliance with the law and in the best interest of the Service and
the country, contrary to insinuations in a section of the
media.
“The Board of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) in a
meeting held on Friday, March 20, 2020 took the decision and
approved that all directors who had served in the FIRS for eight
years and above should be retired.
“The FIRS Board took that decision in line with Paragraph
10.1(a)(iii) of Human Resources Policy and Programmes (HRPP)” of
the FIRS after considering a number of career progression
complaints by some staff in the Service.
“Worthy of note is that FIRS Establishment Act, 2007, Section 7
empowers the FIRS Board to take certain far-reaching decisions in
the interest of the Service and by extension, the country”, Nami
stated in a statement.
He described the FIRS as a national institution of pride where
tribalism and ethnic jingoism has no ground to take roots, let
alone of thriving.
“The FIRS is one national institution which any Nigerian joins
and is assured of rising to the very top in the hierarchy based on
his or her individual competence and hard work on the job, and not
on the basis of any tribal or religious affiliation.”
The Executive Chairman stated: “If any FIRS worker had been a
victim of tribalism or religious discrimination in the past, I say
to such marginalized worker: Not anymore and not on my watch at the
FIRS.”
“Specifically, Section 7 (d) states that the Board shall…
“employ and determine the terms and conditions of service including
disciplinary measures of the employees of the Service”. Section
7(J) states that the Board shall “do such other things which in its
opinion are necessary to ensure the efficient/performance of the
functions of the Service under this Act”.
“It is in the discharge of such responsibilities that the Board
approved the retirement of the nine directors who had spent eight
years and above as directors as provided by the FIRS statutes.
“In doing that, the FIRS Board considered subsisting issues in
the Service which have to do with career progression. Management
had observed that there was stagnation in career progression in the
Service because some directors had served for about 10 years while
younger members of staff who also possessed requisite expertise
could not progress in their career line. Some staff had taken a
number of promotion examinations and had passed but could not be
promoted. The affected staff and the staff unions had complained to
the Management to intervene in the situation.”