The Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, and the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) have refused to comment on the circumstances leading to the unceremonious removal of Mr Chukwuyere Anamekwe as the Acting Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), and the secret appointment of Mr Okolieaboh Sylva as a replacement.
SA Media to the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mr. Yunusa Abdulahi, when contacted on phone to comment on the issue, referred the Nigerian Tribune to the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF).
When this newspaper contacted the Director, Information, Press and Public Relations, OAGF, Mr Henshaw Ogubike, he neither picked a call placed to him nor responded to the WhatsApp message sent to him.
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However, it has been reported that the federal government has quietly replaced Mr Anamekwe as the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), since two weeks ago with new Acting AGF, Mr Sylva, who worked formerly as Director Treasury Single Account (TSA).
According to sources, Mr Anamekwe was allegedly replaced due to allegations that he has been under the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) radar for sometime on account of undisclosed offence.
Also, his secret removal has been attributed to his utterances that the Federal Government was borrowing to pay workers’ salaries, a development that placed the government in an uncomfortable position.
However, the replacement, Mr Sylva is unlikely to become the substantive Accountant General of the Federation because he is due to retire in the first quarter of 2023.
Mr Anamekwe was appointed Acting AGF on May 22, 2022, and made the controversial remark on government borrowing to pay salaries on June 14, 2022, and was replaced on June 21, 2022.
Meanwhile, the federal government has commenced the process of shopping for a new AGF as the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Folasade Yemi-Esan has already issued a circular to that effect.
Titled, commencement of the process of appointment of a substantive Accountant General of the Federation, Yemi-Esan, directed permanent secretaries to forward details of eligible directors on salary grade 17 to her on/or before 4:00pm on Wednesday, July 6, 2022.
In the selection exercise, those who have attained the position of substantive director (salary grade 17) on/or before January 1, 2020 and are not retiring from the service earlier than December 31, 2024 are eligible to participate in the exercise, while officers undergoing disciplinary proceedings are excluded from it.
The Accountant General of the Federation is the administrative head of the country’s treasury, and the office holder is often appointed by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to serve a four-year term as the constitution stipulates.
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