Senate Fumes Over Payment of N14bn Salary Increase by NSPMC

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The Senate on Monday expressed their displeasure over the alleged payment of a salary increase of about N14 billion to members of staff of the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC) Plc by the board of the organisation without the necessary approval.

At the plenary yesterday, the upper chamber of the National Assembly said the company failed to secure the approval of the National Salaries Incomes And Wages Commission (NSIWC) for the pay rise as stipulated in the laws of the land.

The NSIWC Act (1990) stipulates empowers the agency to advise the federal government on national income policy, recommend the proportions of income growth which should be utilised for general wage increases, and inform the government of current and incipient trends in wages and propose guidelines within which increase in wages should be confined, among others.

The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, Mr Ahmed Wadada, who uncovered this anomaly, berated the NSPMC for flouting the law, noting that public funds were spent without due process.

In his contribution, the Deputy Whip of the Senate, Mr Nwebonyi Onyeka, emphasised that the misappropriated funds should be refunded to the coffers of the government.

Business Post reports that the management of NSPMC led by its Managing Director, Mr Ahmed Halilu, appeared before the committee over the 2019 report of the Auditor-General of the Federation, which claimed that between 2016 and 2019, the company’s board approved N14 billion for salaries and allowances without the approval of NSIWC.

In his written submission, Mr Halilu told the Senate that the firm did not need any approval from the regulatory body because it was registered under the Companies and Allied Matters Act.

However, when he appeared before the panel, he admitted that it was wrong not to seek approval from the NSIWC before implementing the new salaries and allowances increase for the company

“It has come to our notice that we must obtain approval before salaries increase. It is salaries paid over three years.

“On this ground, it was not misappropriated considering the volume of work done by thousands of staff over this period,” Mr Halilu stated.