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The attention of the former, Kogi State Deputy Governor, His Excellency, Dr. Phillips Omeiza Salawu, FCA had been drawn to the news circulating in the social media about him employing a WASC holder as a grade level 13 officer during his tenure as the Deputy Governor of the state.
The following is the true version of the story from the former Deputy Governor:
It is the custom of the political offices like the Governor and Deputy Governor’s Office to create employments upon assumption of office by the principal. The then Deputy Governor created some offices including P. A., S. A., Press Secretary, Director of Protocol, Medical Officer, Hair Dresser, Barber, Chief Security Officer, Office Assistant, etc. as also obtainable in the Governor’s Office. These offices were political and their occupants were not there on merit but on political considerations.
The salary grade levels of such officers had no bearings with their paper qualifications because consideration was mainly political. This practice is what is happening anywhere in the world where modern democracy is being practised.
At the time the tenure of the then Deputy Governor was expiring, his political staff who wished to work in Civil Service were advised to reapply and be considered for Civil Service Placements. Those successful applicants for the Civil Service employments were later given appropriate letters reflecting their experience and paper qualifications.
That was what happened in the case of one Mrs. Vivian Salawu who was politically placed as a medical officer and when the tenure of the Deputy Governor was expiring, she later got reviewed to a clerical staff, downgraded from her former political status of grade level 13. The clerical level letter of appointment is what is required for the current screening exercise and not the political employment letter which had ceased at the expiration of the tenure of the Deputy Governor.
The Office of the then Deputy Governor was humiliated as his staff members were not on consolidated salary scale as obtainable in the then Governor’s Office and what was given to his staff were the enhanced grade levels which were no near the monetary values of the consolidated salary scales of the political staff in the then Deputy Governor’s Office.
It is on record that all the political staff in the then Deputy Governor’s Office who wanted to get employed into Civil Service were regularized at least 3 months to the exit date of the Deputy Governor and they continued in the Civil Service till date as real workers and NOT GHOST WORKERS. They are also receiving their normal Civil Service grade level salaries including this particular one, Mrs. Vivian Salawu who had been receiving a clerical level salary since her conversion into Civil Service, 5 years ago.
The other issue of Mrs. Vivian Salawu sharing her salary with the wife of the Deputy Governor was a demonic blackmail against the great personalities of the Deputy Governor and his wife. The truth of the matter is that Mrs. Vivian Salawu is the wife of Mr. Tunde Salawu, the younger brother to the Deputy Governor’s wife. The Deputy Governor and his lovely wife shared same surname – SALAWU.
Mrs. Vivian Salawu and Mr. Tunde Salawu had earlier collaborated together to forge the land documents (C of O) of both the Deputy Governor and his wife and they sold the two forged documents to unsuspecting buyers and received money for the fraudulent transactions. It was when the buyers wanted to perfect their documents that they discovered the documents were forged by Tunde Salawu and took Tunde Salawu to the police station for criminal investigation.
Mr. Tunde Salawu later came to her sister and his in-law, the Deputy Governor and begged them to agree that the forged documents were theirs which the duo declined his dubious request. This explains the assertion by Mrs. Vivian Salawu that she shared her salaries of grade level 13 with the wife of the Deputy Governor so as to pay back for their decline in helping them to solve the forgery case at the Lokoja Police Station.
It was the Deputy Governor and his wife that arranged and funded the marriage of Tunde and his wife Vivian. The car Tunde is riding now was financed by his sister, the Deputy Governor’s wife. Their accommodation and general welfare including the now controversial employment were facilitated by the Deputy Governor and his wife.
In summary, the grade level 13 employment letter being paraded by Mrs. Vivian Salawu was a political appointment and she had since for the past 5 years been degraded to her proper clerical level on which she should be cleared in the screening exercise as a bonafide staff and not a ghost worker. This is the TRUE POSITION.
It is however unfortunate that Mr. Fanwo Kingsley, the Director General (DG) Media to the Governor of Kogi State went to the air and the social media without listening to this version of the Deputy Governor. The Deputy Governor sent a message to him to speak with him but refused to pick the phone calls of the Deputy Governor. It is unclear what manner of journalism is being practised by the DG Media.
By Aliyu Abdullahi
Press Secretary to the former Deputy Governor of Kogi State.
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