The Academic Staff Union of Research Institutions(ASURI)has called on President Bola Tinubu to reject the tenure extension proposal of former director general of the
Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Prof. Hussein Ibrahim after his second and final tenure in office expired on April 7, 2024.
Prof. Theophilus Ndubuaku, Secretary General of the ASURI, stated this in a letter addressed to the president and made available to the press on Wednesday in Abuja.
The letter was titled:
Urgent need to curb Professor Hussaini D. Ibrahim from holding on to the finances of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) after the expiration of his second and final tenure as Director General/Chief Executive Officer of the Council.
In the letter, the ASURI Secretary General argued that Prof. Ibrahim, former two term director general of the RMRDC totally disregarded and violated extant financial regulations by still holding on to the finances of the council.
“Following our protest letter of 16th April 2024, with Ref. No. ASN/SGF/RMRDC/0424/01, in which we reported his refusal to hand- over to the next most senior Director in compliance with extant regulations and vacate office.
” Professor Ibrahim did a hushed verbal handover to the Director of Industrial Plant and Equipment, Engineer Emmanuel Kwaya, without any documentation.
“However, he continues to hold on to control of the Council’s finances, authorizing payments and performing other executive functions as if nothing has changed, ” the letter read.
Ndubuaku wrote that ASURI had it on good account that the former RMRDC’s D-G, Ibrahim applied for tenure extension, which was an aberration with no legal backing anywhere.
He said Ibrahim was “already boasting that his approval would receive a Presidential nod anytime from now, which explains why he does not want to hand over.”
The ASURI Secretary General cited section 9 (d) of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council Act, 2022, which stated that the Director General/CEO shall “hold office for a term of five years in the first instance and may be re-appointed for another term of five years and no more.”
Ndubuaku clarified that giving Ibrahim a tenure extension of even one day would be an anathema to the laws of the land and the system and would negatively impact the anti-corruption stance and integrity of the President Bola Tinubu administration.
The letter explained that before Ibrahim was appointed as substantive Chief Executive of RMRDC in April 2014, he had occupied the position in an acting capacity for one year.
” He was appointed for a four-year tenure under the existing Establishment Act. He manipulated an amendment of the Act to make it a five-year tenure for the CEO, for which he has enjoyed two tenures of five years each, making a total stretch of 11 years as Chief Executive of RMRDC. “
Referring to the Circular of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) of 4th December 2024 with Ref. No. SGF.50/S.11/C.2/268 titled, “End of tenure processes for Heads of Extra-Ministerial Departments, Directors General , Chief Executive Officers of Parastatals, Agencies, Commissions and Government -owned companies succession guideline.”
The ASURI Secretary General said the circular stated: “…pending the appointment of a substantive Head of Extra-Ministerial Department/Director General/Chief Executive Officer of Parastatals, Agency, Commission and Government-owned Company, the outgoing Chief Executive Officer must handover to the next most senior officer of the establishment, as long as the officer does not have any pending disciplinary matter. “
Ndubuaku said the circular further explicitly stated that “outgoing Heads of Extra-Ministerial Departments, Parastatals, Agencies, Commissions, and Government-Owned Companies, are not allowed the discretion of choosing the officer to whom they would hand over.”
He said Professor Ibrahim’s refusal to hand-over formally and vacate office administratively and financially was also in violation of section 2.1.2 (d) (ii) of Conditions of Service for Federal Research Agencies, Institutions and Colleges(COS 2019).
The ASURI Secretary General therefore prayed that President Tinubu should reject the proposal of Professor Ibrahim for a tenure extension, no matter how brief.
That the President should direct office of the Accountant General of the Federation to delay the release of quarterly allocation of funds to RMRDC until a proper handover by Professor Ibrahim is done.
The ASURI also prayed that Tinubu directs a probe into the circumstances leading to the refusal of the former D-G to hand over and the financial authorizations he has granted since 8th April 2024.