By Christiana Ekpa
Aggrieved staff of the Ministry of Interior have petitioned the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, over alleged revenue sabotage by the Director in Charge of Citizenship and Business (C&B), Moremi Soyinka – Onilaja.
In a 5 – page petition dated 29th March, 2022, jointly signed by Femi Adewale, Jimoh Abdulkarim Sule and Ikenna Maurice on behalf of concerned Staff of the Ministry, the Director was accused of turning operations of the department upside down for pecuniary gains within the last two years.
The Petitioners in the petition titled: “Exposing the Rot and Fraudulent Maneuvers of Mrs Moremi Soyinka – Onilaja and her collaborators in the Federal Ministry of Interior “, levelled series of allegations against the Director who they said , is untouchable in the Ministry.
The petition reads in part : ‘Events of the last two years in the Department of Citizenship and Business in the Ministry of Interior, have brought the ministry under serious negative glare.
“The principal character in this theater of absurdity is Mrs. Moremi Soyinka-Onijala, the Director in charge of Citizenship and Business Department, (C&B) at the Federal Ministry of Interior (FMI), who has deliberately refused to process and forward mountains of applications for expatriate quota/business permits for approvals, except and until after robust gratification from frustrated and highly embittered applicants.
“Since her cruel and vicious scheme began about two years ago, it has been a season of unending delays, one of her core signature antics, thereby resulting in a pile of untreated applications with negative impact on inflow of foreign direct investments into the country, a core priority of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
“Mrs. Soyinka-Onijala’s interests as a civil servant conflict with that of her employer over revenue collection and usage.
“In a more detestably scandalous manner, payments are deposited into different accounts created for the purpose instead of REMITA/TSA, prompting stakeholders and Ministry staff to wonder why she has been left unsanctioned.
“With this array of irregularities and impunity, the Director’s actions and inactions are not only stifling the rule of law, but an unmitigated recipe for criminality and outright disregard for laid out rules and regulations.
“Unfortunately, she has the backing of the high and mighty in the Ministry.”
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