The Nigerian Senate has launched a probe into the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC) board’s purported payment of N14 billion for staff salary increases.
The Senate Public Accounts Committee, led by Chairman Ahmed Wadada, disclosed that the agency failed to obtain approval from the National Salaries Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC) before implementing the salary increment.
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During the hearing on Monday, the NSPMC management, including Managing Director Alhaji Ahmed Halilu, faced questions related to queries outlined in the 2019 audit report. The report indicated that the NSPMC board greenlit the N14 billion allocation for salary and allowance hikes between 2016 and 2019 without the required endorsements.
Halilu initially argued, citing the company’s registration under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), that NSIWC’s approval was unnecessary. However, he later conceded before the Senate committee that the failure to seek the NSIWC’s approval before the salary increase was indeed an oversight.
Senator Nwebonyi Onyeka strongly advocated for the reimbursement of the misappropriated funds to the Federal Government’s treasury.
