The
attention of Nigeria Customs Service has been drawn to a misleading
publication by a section of the media, concerning a supposed dismissal
of 59 officers by the Comptroller General of Customs, Col. Hameed
Ibrahim Ali (Rtd). This misleading report quotes
a circular dated 19th January 2017, signed by the Ag. Comptroller (Discipline).
Obviously,
the originator of this story came across an otherwise internal
communication and without verification, went to press with a story that
is capable of causing panic, fear with negative consequences on the
morale of the workforce.
The Service wishes to state as follows:
•
That sometimes last year, these officers were served with various
disciplinary actions ranging from warning, retirement to dismissal for
different offences.
• That the Public Relations unit then
issued a press statement on the development which was widely reported by
the print, electronic and online media.
• That as a
routine practice of keeping officers and men of the Service informed,
the Ag. Comptroller (Discipline) compiled the names of all officers
affected by the disciplinary action for circulation to all customs
formations across the country.
• The notification to
serving officers and men is in keeping with the Service pre-emptive
measures to deter any affected officer who may choose to hang around to
engage in illegalities.
It is therefore,
unfortunate for a reporter to stumble on an internal communication of an
organisation and rush to press without seeking for clarification.
For
the avoidance of doubt, the Service has not dismissed any officer since
the one duly reported last year. The story is false and represents a
repetition of same story delivered as new.
While
the NCS will not hesitate to discipline erring officers, such action is
usually painstakingly driven through all well established disciplinary
procedures.
Accordingly, all service personnel and the general public are advised to discountenance the misleading report.
Signed
Joseph Attah
Ag. Public Relations Officer
No comments:
Post a Comment