The Kogi State Government on Thursday said a late director in its civil service, Alphonsus Ameh, was sacked due to alleged involvement in a fraudulent diversion of N225,936,425.72 million pensioners’ fund.
Mr Ameh, who was in the state Pension Board, died on Monday at the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja, few days after allegedly receiving his sack letter.
Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the Governor, Petra Onyegbule, told NAN in Lokoja that the late Ameh and four others in the pension board were sacked due to alleged misappropriation of pensioners’ fund.
According to Onyegbule, a nine-man senior management committee was set up by the state government, which had Mr Aiyedero Jethro, the Acting Permanent Secretary as Chairman, and Mr John Ekele, the Acting Director of Finance as the Secretary, for fair hearing.
She added that an emergency meeting of the committee was held on May 4, 2017, which drew the attention of the members to the report from the State Intelligence Bureau and the review of the same by State Auditor-General, Mr Yusuf Okala.
She said that the report was on a case of misappropriation of pensioners’ fund, forwarded to the office of the Head of Civil Service by the Secretary to the State Government where the governor had directed that immediate action be taken appropriately.
“In the report, the auditor-general recommended the immediate dismissal of all civil servants indicted in the police report.
“Based on the personal confession by Mr Alphonsus Ameh to the State Intelligence Bureau and that he (Ameh) has commenced repayment, attested to the fact that he actually committed the fraud.
“The late Ameh confirmed to the committee that he received a sum of N2 million as his own share of the looted pensioners’ fund, which he thought was a Christmas bonus.
“Ameh also confirmed that he had refunded part of the money, and pleaded that the committee should temper justice with mercy, considering the numbers of years he had spent in the service.
“The committee said that since Ameh affirmed his participation in the sharing of the misappropriated fund, coupled with the fact that he (Ameh) had commenced refunding part of the money, confirmed that he was guilty of the offence.
“The committee added that Ameh has violated the Public Service Rule (PSR) No. 4, section 04401 No. VIII, XI and XII, liable to dismissal from the Service, and therefore, recommended that the punishment stipulated by the PSR should be upheld as a deterrent to other civil servants.
“It is on the recommendation of the committee that Mr Alphonsus Yahaya Ameh, and four others were sacked in June 2017, because a case of criminal conspiracy and theft was established against them,” Onyegbule said.
