Report Of The House Committee On Public Petitions On The Petition By Umeh Gabriel U. Against The Federal Medical Centre Keffi Nassarawa State On The Wrongful, Oppressive, Unjustifiable And Unlawful Stoppage Of His Salary While Employment Is Still Subsisting

1.0        PREAMBLE

1.1     The House of  Representatives at its sitting on Wednesday 31st January 2018 received a petition presented by Hon. Azodo Eucharia on behalf of Mr Gabriel Umeh against the Management of the Federal Medical Centre Keffi, Nassarawa State on the wrongful, oppressive, unjustified and unlawful stoppage which was refer to the Committee for further legislative action.

2.0     PETITIONER’S SUBMISSION/PRESENTATION

2.1     The petitioner Mr Gabriel Umeh was employed as a Staff of Federal Medical Centre Keffi on 16th August 2013 as a medical Laboratory Scientist on 16th August 2013 as a medical Laboratory Scientist on salary grade level 8step2, but now a level 10 officer.  

2.2     That he was unlawfully invited to a senior Staff Disciplinary Committee where his HOD was part of the Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee making recommendations that he should be dismissed from Federal Medical Centre Keffi, thereby, violating the Chapter 3 of the Public Service Rule.

2.3     That without any query issued to the petitioner, he was invited to appear before Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee on the 25th October 2017 via a letter the petitioner was not informed of any breach, infraction, offence or misdemeanour for which he was to appeared for the said Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee.

2.2     Sequel  to that aforementioned, the said Committee did not meet with the petitioner until the 2nd November 2017 and at the same meeting was not confronted with any changer to response to.

2.3     That some time on April 2017, the Head of the Haematology Unit of the Medical Laboratory Service Department verbally asked him to leave the unit for his pathology unit to which the petitioner requested for a formal letter of transfer and he refused.

2.4     That having worked in the same department since his employment as a staff of Federal Medical Centre Keffi, he protested against this verbal transfer and backed it up with a letter he wrote to the Medical Director of the Federal Medical Centre Keffi dated 28th April 2017, informing him about the matter.

2.5     That surprisingly to him, his name was excluded in November and December 2017 staff salary.

2.6     That on following up the matter to know the cause of removing his name on November and December 2017 staff. He was informed at the Finance and Account Department that his name had been removed from schedule of payment in the integrated payroll and personal information system (IPPIS).

2.7     That what baffled the petitioner was that his employment with Federal Medical Centre Keffi is still subsisting that there was no termination or suspension letter given to him.

That currently, the petitioner still resumes work, sign attendance register and carry out his normal duty in office.

3.0     PETITIONER’SPRAYER

That his salary should be restored with payment of all arrears, benefits and entitlement in IPPIS. That an official letter be given to him to his new place of transfer.

4.0     INVESTIGATIVE HEARING

4.1     The Investigative Hearing of the matter was concluded on Thursday 31st May 2018 after the 2nd Hearing with both parties in attendant making both oral and documentary presentations.

5.0     RESPONDENDT’S PRESENTATION (FEDERAL MADICAL CENTRE KEFFI)

5.1     The Management of Federal Medical Centre Keffi, ably represented by Dr D.G Shigaba, in his presentation duely acknowledge as follows;

5.2     That the assertion that the petitioner was invited to Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee without just cause was not true.

5.3     That what happened was that when the petitioner’s Head of Department discovered that he was a trained Histopathology, he was officially asked to proceed on posting from Haematology Unit to Histopathology Unit with an official letter but he refused to proceed on posting from 4th May 2017 till disciplinary action was meted out to him on October 2017.

5.4     That for a period of six months, the petitioner refused to proceed on posting and so was not working as his duty roster for his new.

5.5     That when he  refused to proceed on posting, he was issued with query letter dated 9th May 2017 by the Management of Federal Medical Centre Keffi, but he refused to collect the letter.

5.6     That consequence upon his action not to collect the query letter with a letter to appear before the Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee.

5.7     That at the Disciplinary Committee level the Committee found him culpable of the following offences under the Public service Rules;

i.       Refusal to proceed to transfer or accept posting (Public Service Rule 030301).

ii.       Engaging on divided loyalty (Public Service Rule 030402).

iii.      Negligence (Public Service Rule 030301).

iv.      Insubordination (Public Service Rule 030301).

And the penalty for all these offences is outright dismissal from service.

5.8     That his case with others were reported to the Federal Ministry of Health   and the Hon. Minister of State for health, who approved as follows;

5.9     That the petitioner should be placed on 3 months suspension with pay and six months probation and thereafter should be served with a letter of warning and he is to submit a written undertaking to be of good behaviour, and to desist from repeating such acts.

5.10   That the petitioner’s HOD was among the member of Disciplinary Committee was true, because as a head of department he is a statutory member of the Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee.

5.11   That in the case of Umeh Gabriel, Mohammed A. Haruna (Director Medical Laboratory Service) was in the Committee as a witness.

5.12   That due to the magnanimity of the Hon. Minister for State Health, the Petitioner’s employment was still subject to his undergoing the disciplinary measures meted on him.

5.13   The Respondent (FMC Keffi) also complained that Mr.umeh Gabriel Uzoma filed a case at the National Industrial Court in with suit N0 NICN/ABJ/357/2017, titled Umeh Gabriel vs Medical Director Federal Medical Centre Keffi, before laying a petition before the Committee on Public Petition.

6.0     RESPONDENT’S PRAYER

That Federal Medical Centre Keffi’s stand on this petition is that the above petition is subjudice and should not be entertained by the Committee.

7.0     COMMITTEE’S FINDINGS

7.1     The Committee after careful perusal on both the oral and documentary presentation of both parties came up with the following issue for determination.

7.2     Whether what led to the stoppage of the petitioner’s salary from IPPIs was justifiable.

7.3     Whether the recommendation of the Hon. Minister of state for Health as regards the issue at stake was followed by the Management of Federal Medical Centre Keffi.

Arising from the aforementioned, the Committee observed as follows;

7.4     That the decision by the Management of the Federal medical Centre Keffi to stop the salary of the petitioner from the Integrated Payroll and Personal Information System (IPPIS) was not justifiable and viable conclusion not yet reached when his salary was stopped.

7.5     Further observation also showed that the Hon. Minister of State for Health recommended that the petitioner should be placed on 3 months suspension with pay and six months probation and thereafter should be served with a letter of warning in which the petitioner was to submit a written undertaking to be of good behaviour and to desist from repeating such acts in future but such instruction was not taken into consideration by the petitioner’s salary from IPPIS.

7.6     Further observation also revealed that there was no particular clause in the Hon. Minister’s recommendation that states that the petitioner’s salary should be stopped from IPPIS.

7.7     Through the offence committed against the FMC by the petitioner worth taking drastic action against him but courtesy demands that due process should have been follow before such action is taken against him as recommended by the Hon. Ministry of State for Health.

8.0     COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

8.1     The Committee in view of the above findings urge the House to;

  1. Uphold the recommendation of the Hon. Minister of State for Health by directing the Medical director, Federal Medical Centre Keffi to restore the salary of the petitioner and pay him all the arrears of his entitlement and benefits.
  2. That the permanent Secretary should transfer the petitioner to another Federal Medical Centre so as to avoid further victimization on him by the Management of Federal Medical Centre Keffi.

Rep. Uzoma Nkem Abonta                                   Omale A. Adoyi

Chairman                                                                    Committee Clerk