[size=16pt]Govt denies zoning of AGF’s office, defends merit test [/size]

THERE is now a shift from the traditional way of appointing the Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF). Unlike the old order in which the occupant of the office was picked by the President from three shortlisted persons from any part of the country, the next holder of the office will emerge from a competitive test to be conducted by the Federal Government.

The scope of selection has also been widened to allow eligible candidates from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) outside the Federal Ministry of Finance to aspire and feature in the qualifying examination.

The Guardian learnt that the new arrangement is at the instance of President Goodluck Jonathan, who directed that the exercise be made open through an all-inclusive competitive test.

Consequently, all interested Directors of Finance and Accounts in MDAs are qualified to participate in the test, with the Finance Ministry, former Accountants-General of the Federation (AGFs), Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC) mandated by the government to set the guidelines for the examination.

Head of the Service of the Federation (HOSF), Prof. Oladapo Afolabi, who confirmed the plan, said: “Through a recent presidential approval, the mode of appointing the Accountant-General of the Federation has changed and a new one will emerge soon through a very competitive examination process that will involve all Directors of Finance and Accounts in the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), And it is not true that the office has been zoned to any geo-political zone in the country, ”

In an interview with The Guardian yesterday, he said a report in a national daily that he unilaterally changed the mode of appointing the AGF was untrue. He said: “Such a publication was without understanding of the rule of engagement. The Accountant-General is part of the presidential appointments. No law or rule or convention has zoned the office to any part of the country. It is a public service appointment. The last holder, Alhaji Dankwambo from Gombe State took over from Mr. Kayode Naiyeju from Ondo State. Had it been zoned, a contender from South-West would have been recommended. Recall that even the then Accountant-General of Lagos State was among the three recommended then. But the former President Olusegun Obasanjo approved the candidate from Gombe, Any report about zoning AGF’s office to any region is unconscionable, ”

Other reports insinuated that some candidates from the North had been gearing up to take the office vacated recently by Dankwambo to pick the Gombe State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship ticket.

Afolabi explained that no one should split hairs about the newly advertised mode of appointing a new AGF as the President also approved that the old method of selection through a shortlist of three from the office of the outgoing AGF and the Head of Service in collaboration with the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation should be enhanced.

He said: “Don’t forget that we attend international meetings, seminars and Commonwealth Advanced Seminar on Public Service Reforms where we also build capacity on the best practices and international standards. In Singapore and New Zealand, they even advertise offices like the permanent secretaries. They ask qualified officers to apply, Not too long ago, the Office of the Head of Service also changed the mode of appointing permanent secretaries. They now sit for written examinations and tough oral interviews. Before then, it was just selection without any remarkable criteria. So, the era of mere shortlist for the President to choose one is gone. The President himself has changed the mode of selection,

“He (the President) has directed me to get the best from the federal bureaucracy, including all agencies. So, all qualified directors of finance and accounts in the MDAs can put in for the examination, We should be ready for public service reform. Our old ways of doings things cannot stand the test of modern public service system, That was why we issued the circular on the new deal on January 10, 2011 asking all qualified personnel in the public finance system to apply, ”

In the circular titled: “Appointment of Accountant-General of the Federation,” addressed to the principal secretary to the president, principal secretary to the vice president, chief justice of the federation, ministers, SGF, special advisers/ senior special assistants, service chiefs, the inspector-general of police, chairman, FCSC, auditor-general of the federation, accountant-general of the federation, surveyor-general of the federation, chief registrar, Supreme Court of Nigeria, directors-general and chief executive officers of parastatals and agencies, Afolabi had cited the President’s approval thus: “Following the approval of the President to fill the vacant position of the AGF, you are accordingly requested to forward the list, personal, confidential files as well as 15 copies of curriculum vitae of all substantive directors (accountants) on Grade Level 17 in your establishment on or before Friday, January 21, 2011.”

During the selection, eligible candidates will be evaluated on their understanding of government fiscal policy, management of government finances, integrity, experience, knowledge of global financial trends and issues, information technology, and communication skills.

Others are general knowledge, visioning capacity and firmness in fund control measures as well as proper management of public finances.
They will also be assessed on leadership qualities, competence on rules, process and procedure, project development, policy development and implementation, familiarity with contemporary government policies and priorities, visioning capacity and firmness on the rule of law.

These attributes will be evaluated through administration of questionnaires, written examination, basic training and test in ICT software such as word processing, excel and power joint, and oral presentations to a broad-based panel of experienced experts in governance.”

The Guardian learnt that a panel comprising the finance minister, former AGFs, chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission and Head of Service to work out the guidelines and details of the examination procedure and format will soon be constituted.

It was also learned that Dankwambo actually joined the service as a federal director, a process that was rushed through the FCSC and the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation then. He had been recommended as Accountant-General of Gombe State but before his paper could get to Obasanjo, he was appointed as deputy director, which was the equivalent in the federal bureaucracy as a transferee from Gombe State.

Within 24 hours, he was promoted director in the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, a position he (Dankwambo) never occupied for a day before his credentials were presented to the President.

He was actually presented together with the then Accountant-General of Lagos State, who was never transferred to the Federal Civil Service even as it was then known that the former Lagos State Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu had some treasury challenge with Obasanjo over seized local councils funds. That was how the leeway was facilitated for Dankwambo to emerge ahead of the Lagos State nominee for the job.

Some of the improprieties associated with the procedures of the appointment of top jobs, sources said, were among the reasons the President insisted that “the process must be all-inclusive and competitive for the best to emerge.”

http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36814:govt-denies-zoning-of-agfs-office-defends-merit-test-&catid=1:national&Itemid=559

I knew the day was coming, but I never thought it would be this fast!

And people say that GEJ is not working?

This is a HUGE POSITIVE change!

In fact this is the best news out of Nigeria this year so far.

Let other departments follow suit.

Great news! Those who said GEJ lacks foresight will be suprised at the shock and awe that this man has planned out for them.

i love this development only if they will select it sincerely without cheating. i hope to see Nigeria without sense of majority and minority. then alone shall we see progress. frankly speaking, my support to Jonathan is simply sectional not purely on his merit conviction. he is yet to apply all this his visions to convince me truly.

Story story! lol wake me up when ugly pigs fly.

I wager Bianca Ojukwu was also appointed on merit. Arrrant nonsense!

Merit ko, Merit ni.