By Aaron Ossai
The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack, has acknowledged that her office did not carry out sufficient due diligence before approving recruitment requests linked to the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).
Walson-Jack made the admission on Wednesday while testifying before the House of Representatives Committee investigating the activities of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC).
She told lawmakers that her office acted on documents submitted by representatives of the organisations without independently verifying their authenticity.
According to her, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service received a Letter of Appointment and an Establishment Act, which, alongside interactions with representatives of the PEAC and PFIPC, formed the basis for issuing an Authorised Establishment and, subsequently, a Recruitment Waiver.
Reflecting on the approvals, Walson-Jack admitted that more thorough verification should have been carried out before the documents were approved.
She explained that the existence of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council as an ad hoc body may have contributed to the confusion, noting that the documents presented bore the names of both PEAC and PFIPC.
However, she maintained that a proper due diligence process could have established whether the documents submitted were genuine.
The House Committee is investigating the activities of the promotion council, which is alleged to have operated as a fraudulent government agency, as well as the circumstances under which it secured official recognition and recruitment approvals from government institutions.
The investigative panel is chaired by Hon. Yusuf Gagdi, the lawmaker representing Kanke/Kanam/Pankshin Federal Constituency of Plateau State.
