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Ministers’ conduct needs to be properly policed, review says

Ministers’ conduct needs to be properly policed, review says
The prime minister should no longer be the only person who can give permission for ethics investigations into his own conduct and that of ministers, according to a wide-ranging review by the independent committee on standards in public life.
The committee, chaired by former spy chief Jonathan Evans, found that the rules around the conduct of ministers need strengthening, arguing they currently fall “below the bar” for effective standards regulation.
In its “landscape review” of standards in public life, it made nine recommendations, including major changes to the ministerial code of conduct, which is overseen by the prime minister.
It follows widespread calls for reform of the system after Boris Johnson’s previous adviser on ministers’ interests, Sir Alex Allan, resigned after a report into the conduct of Priti Patel, the home secretary, was ignored.
Following an investigation into allegations that Patel engaged in bullying behaviour, Allan found she had “not consistently met the high standards expected of her”, but a government statement said the PM had full confidence in her and considered the matter “closed”.
Since then, Johnson has appointed a new adviser, Christopher Geidt, a former senior aide to the Queen, whose first task was investigating the controversial Downing Street refurbishment that involved Johnson borrowing money from a Tory donor via the Conservative party.
Lord Geidt concluded that Johnson had acted in an “unwise” manner without having breached the rules.
At the moment, the PM is the only person with the power to order investigations into the conduct of ministers, including himself, and is the one to appoint the independent adviser who carries out investigations.
However, the committee on standards in public life said the independent adviser on ministerial interests should instead be appointed by a panel made up predominantly of independent members.
It also recommended that the adviser should be able to initiate their own investigations, have the authority to determine breaches of the code and see their report published within eight weeks of submission to the PM.
On the ministerial code itself, the report said it needed to have a constitutional footing laid down in law, with any revisions subject to advice from the independent adviser, and possible sanctions for breaches should be set out including apologies, fines and asking for a minister’s resignation.
The committee also recommended a strengthening of the advisory committee on business appointments (Acoba), which governs the revolving door between government and the private sector by advising on lobbying and jobs taken on by former ministers and officials.
It said the current ban on officials and ministers lobbying for two years after leaving their post should be able to be extended to up to five years, and any work for a lobbying firm should be included in the ban, rather than just a prohibition on direct lobbying.
“The lack of any meaningful sanctions for a breach of the rules is no longer sustainable,” the report said, suggesting injunctions against lobbying work could be sought or means of recouping severance or pension payments.
Thirdly, it said there needed to be further reforms to the powers of the commissioner for public appointments, which oversees jobs for top civil servants and at public bodies, to make sure appointment panels are independent.
Evans, a former director general of MI5, said the committee had concluded that the “current system of standards regulation is overly dependent on convention”. The recommendations were necessary to “restore public confidence in the regulation of ethical standards in government”, he added.
In response, Dave Penman, the general secretary of the FDA union for senior civil servants, said the recommendation that the independent adviser should be able to initiate investigations was “essential if the code is to have a meaningful independent function”.
“There can be no hiding from the fact that the current prime minister has undermined confidence in the ministerial code as a meaningful regulator of ministerial conduct,” Penman said.
The recommendations were endorsed by Sir John Major, the former Tory prime minister who first set up the committee.
In a foreword, Major said the committee “makes many important recommendations that I hope will be approved by the government – and, where necessary, parliament – and then implemented”.
Angela Rayner, the deputy Labour leader, said her party welcomed the report, and many of its recommendations had previously been called for by Labour.
“Boris Johnson and his Conservative colleagues’ actions have repeatedly undermined standards in our public life,” she said.
“The system that is supposed to uphold the ministerial code, lobbying rules, business appointments, public appointments and transparency is clearly unfit for purpose.
“Ministers have disregarded the rules and it is about time for a radical overhaul of the system.”
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2,363 Ghost Workers Uncovered by Zamfara Govt

The Zamfara State Government said it had uncovered 2,363 ghost workers following the verification of civil and public servants in the state.
Governor Dauda Lawal constituted a committee headed by the state Head of Service in August 2024 with the mandate to conduct the verification exercise of state workers.
A statement by the governor’s spokesman, Sulaiman Idris, revealed that the verification process exposed 220 minors receiving monthly pay as civil servants.
The statement noted that the verification exercise was necessary due to the state government’s efforts to implement the N70,000 minimum wage.
Idris said, “The committee’s final report submitted to Governor Dauda Lawal highlighted that 27,109 permanent workers were cleared while workers with questionable employment include 2,363 ghost workers, 1082 civil servants who are due for retirement, 395 contract staff, 261 not on the nominal roll, 213 on study leave, 220 minors in employment, and 67 workers on secondment.
“The report highlighted that 75 workers’ first appointment dates were not in compliance with the issue dates, and all of them were minors at the time of employment.
“During the verification, 2,363 ghost workers were exposed. They were paid a total of N193,642,097.19 every month.
“1082 workers are due for retirement, and they collect a total sum of N80,542,298.26 monthly. At the same time, five workers found to be on secondment were paid monthly N354,927.60.
“The verification committee recommended suspending 207 workers who were not cleared. They are paid a total salary of N16,370,645.90 monthly.
“The committee found 12 workers on the payroll but not in the database and collected a monthly salary of N726,594.
“These verification exercises are ongoing efforts to monitor the Zamfara workforce and ensure transparency and accountability in service, especially as the minimum wage payments begin in March of this year.”
News
Court adjourns Ganduje’s bribery case to April 15

A Kano State High Court has fixed April 15, 2025, for the hearing of all pending preliminary objections in the case of alleged bribery and misappropriation involving the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, his wife, Hafsat Umar, and six others.
The Kano State Government instituted an eight-count charge against the defendants, accusing them of bribery, misappropriation, and the diversion of public funds amounting to billions of naira.
The other defendants in the case include Abubakar Bawuro, Umar Abdullahi Umar, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari Textiles Limited, and Lasage General Enterprises Limited.
Court Proceedings
When the case came up for the hearing of pending applications on Thursday, the prosecution counsel, Adeola Adedipe, SAN, told the court that he was ready to proceed.
“My Lord, we have filed a motion on notice, dated February 2 and served on February 5, seeking an extension of time to enable us to regularize our preliminary objection,” Adedipe said.
Counsel for Ganduje, his wife, and Umar, Mrs. Lydia Oluwakemi-Oyewo, also indicated readiness to proceed with their defense.
However, some defense counsels requested more time to regularize their legal processes. Counsel for the 3rd and 7th defendants, Adekunle Taiye-Falola, said, “My Lord, we filed our application for an extension of time, dated December 12, 2024, to reply to our further and better affidavit on points of law. We need to regularize our processes.”
Similarly, counsel for the 5th defendant, Sunusi Musa, SAN, moved a motion on notice for an extension of time, dated and filed January 7, 2025. “Our motion is supported by a 10-paragraph affidavit and a written address. We urge the court to grant the application,” Musa stated.
While counsel for the 6th respondent, Abubakar Ahmed, informed the court that he had filed a preliminary objection dated September 9 and was ready to proceed, counsel for the 8th defendant, Ibrahim Aliyu-Nasarawa, requested additional time.
“My Lord, I am not ready to move my application. I intend to file and reply on points of law,” Aliyu-Nasarawa told the court.
Court’s Decision
After listening to the submissions, the presiding judge, Justice Amina Adamu-Aliyu, granted all the applications for an extension of time and adjourned the matter until April 15, 2025.
“The case is hereby adjourned to April 15, 2025, for the hearing of all pending preliminary objections,” Justice Adamu-Aliyu ruled.
The case, which has drawn significant public attention, is expected to proceed with the hearing of objections before moving to the substantive trial.(Channels)
News
FG committed to reducing food prices through Agricultural Investments – Minister

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to lowering the cost of food commodities through massive investments in agricultural production.
Idris stated this in Abuja on Tuesday at a press briefing to kick-start the Ministerial Briefing Session for 2025.
He emphasized that while the government will not impose price controls on food commodities, in line with the principles of a free-market economy, it remains focused on reducing prices by boosting agricultural production and increasing supply.
“In the past, we used to have these commodity boards where prices were fixed but in the spirit of free market and encouraging entrepreneurship, especially within the agricultural value chain, government didn’t feel that it was necessary for them to begin to control prices. Now, what government is doing is to ensure that there is massive production of food items and it’s a supply and demand issue. Once you have whatever you need in abundance, the tendency is that the price will automatically come down,” he said.
While speaking on the successes in the security sector, Idris said in 2024, the security forces neutralized more than 8,000 terrorists and bandits, and arrested 11,600 others, with more than 10,000 weapons recovered.
He stated that with the government’s sustained efforts against terrorists and bandits, the nation’s highways are becoming increasingly safer.
“While we still have a lot of work ahead, our highways have grown safer. The hitherto notorious Abuja-Kaduna highway is one example. As I said, there’s still much more to be done, and we will not relent in our effort.
“Additionally, about 8,000 kidnap victims were successfully rescued. We will continue to work to drive down the number of victims while scaling up our success stories in terms of deterrence, crime-solving, and prosecutions,” he said.
The Minister added that, following their designation as a terrorist organization by a Federal High Court, security forces are now empowered to apply maximum force against the Lakurawa armed group.
On the economy, Idris stated that the Federal Government’s reforms are delivering significant results across key sectors, particularly with the removal of fuel subsidy, which has successfully plugged leakages amounting to hundreds of billions of Naira annually.
He said the introduction of the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS) in December 2023 has enhanced transparency in foreign exchange transactions and facilitated the clearance of billions of dollars in backlogs, and restored investor confidence to the country.
“Last week, the Naira reached an eight-month high in the official market, while foreign capital inflow into the Nigerian Stock Exchange rose from 4% in mid-2023 to an average of 16% by the end of 2024,” he said.
Additionally, he said, in 2024, Nigeria emerged as the most attractive destination for oil and gas investments in Africa, securing over $5 billion in Final Investment Decisions (FIDs).
The Minister described 2025 as a year of consolidation, building on the progress made in the first 19 months of the Tinubu administration as it approaches its mid-term.
“Over the next three months, as we approach the second anniversary of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Administration, we will bring Honorable Ministers to this platform, on a weekly basis.
“This year 2025 is a year of consolidation, a year for building on the gains we have seen in the first 19 months of the administration. This maiden edition for 2025 is an opportunity to remind us of these gains, and to set the context in which these gains are being recorded, as we proceed into the mid-point of this administration,” he said.
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