The National Executives of KOWA Party on Friday condemned President Muhammadu Buhari for reinstating Prof. Usman Yusuf as the Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
The party further demanded that President Muhammadu Buhari should do the needful by sacking the reinstated NHIS Executive Secretary immediately.
At a press conference in Lagos, the party criticised the federal government’s anti-corruption drive and accused its officials of nepotism.
“Our desire for an egalitarian society where all persons and people in Nigeria will be treated equally irrespective of colour, race, ethnic or religious affiliation have been completely eroded under this deceitful government of APC,” the party said.
“More clearly in the books of the cabal in the presidency is a special status accorded the people of the Northern zone especially Katsina state which has made them more Nigerian than any other state, tribe or geo political zone in the country, this maladministration which is ready to cripple the brotherliness and foundation of common unity of our pre and post-independence dream must not be allowed to fester than necessary.
“It is against this backdrop that we speak to Nigerians on the recall of the suspended executive secretary of the NHIS, Mr. Usman Yusuf back to office despite the baggage of allegations against his official conduct while he held sway as the boss of the agency.”
Recall that Yusuf was reinstated as the NHIS boss by President Buhari after his suspension from office last year by the Health Minister, Isaac Adewole, following allegations of gross misconduct.
On Thursday, NHIS workers staged a protest at the premises of the agency’s headquarters in Abuja after Mr. Yusuf reportedly returned to work.
The KOWA party stated that the revelations that led to Mr. Yusuf’s suspension last year were “too gruesome” to be ignored.
“At first on assumption of office, Yusuf engaged in a war of attrition with major stakeholders in the NHIS, with various groups alleging that his leadership of the agency has been faulty and designed to undermine the workings of the Scheme.
“The Health and Managed Care Association of Nigeria (HMCAN) has accused the suspended NHIS boss of doctoring and altering the rules and regulations of the NHIS scheme in a bid to siphon public funds into private pockets through the use of unqualified consultants as insurers and mandated all HMOs to pay N7.2 million each into the company`s account.
“Yusuf’s thinly disguised arrogance surely bespeaks a mindset never seen in public service at that level in recent history.”
The party further stated that other officers suspended alongside Mr. Yusuf were not reinstated.
“In 2016, Femi Akingbade, the former acting executive secretary was suspended by this same government based on petitions received which till date was never investigated, and the man not indicted.
“When Yusuf was suspended, eight other senior officers of NHIS were suspended, till date, none of them have been recalled, yet the presidency asked Usman Yusuf to resume back to duites because he is a kinsman to PMB, this is an act of favouritism and nepotism.
“The eight suspended officers are Femi Akingbade – zonal GM, South South, Mr. John Okon – General Manger, Finance Account, Yusuf Fatika – General Manger, Human Resources and Administration, Shehu Adamu – Assistant General Manager, Audit, Mr. Vincent Mamdam – Assistant General Manager, Head Insurance, Mr. Safiyanu Attah – Senior Assistant Officer, Marketing, Owen Udo Udoma-Senior Manager, Contribution Management and Innocent Abbah- Senior Assistant Officer, Planning Research and Monitoring.
In line with the tenets set forth by the ideals of the country’s leader, President Muhammadu Buhari, on the principles fair play, transparency, rapid targeted development, acts devoid of corruption and elimination of all primordial sentiments, which hitherto had almost torn the seams of our national existence.
We thus bring to the attention of the government and general public the nepotistically inimical and criminally oriented acts currently being machinated and executed by the Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari. Corruption is one of the burning issues in Nigeria; it cuts across various strata of governance.
According to the party, the NHIS was riddled with corruption during Yusuf’s tenure and the president ought to have constituted a new panel to investigate him if he was dissatisfied with the Health Minister’s recommendations.
“With immediate effect, we call for the immediate sack of the recalled NHIS Executive Secretary, Usman Yusuf and his immediate handover to the anti-corruption agencies with the sole aim of charging to court to recover all the looted funds traced to him and his cronies.”
