The Acting Director General of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Engr. Mohammed Haruna, has refuted allegations that he bribed the minister of Science and Technology, Prof. Ita Ewa with N400m to clinch the position as an Acting DG.
Speaking in an interactive session with select journalists yesterday in Abuja, Haruna said the allegation was coming from disgruntled persons, who want to rubbish the good name of the minister and himself.
He said, “Since I became the Acting DG, some faceless people with unregistered, untraceable and fictitious business names and addresses have been coming up with baseless accusations on the pages of newspapers that I gave bribe in order to be appointed. They have been coming up with conflicting amounts before it was N250m, later it was N150 now they’re saying I bribed the minister with N400m.
“But there is a time when we have to come up and make clarifications. There is no truth in all these accusation because before an Acting DG was selected for NASENI, a reputable consultant went round and made an appraisal of all the existing Directors which I came out as the best hence the selection.”
Haruna also picked holes on speculations coming from some quarters that he was unqualified for the position academically and in years of service, saying that he was a first class material with requisite years of service to back up his selection.
Making clarifications on another allegation that the Acting DG was deliberately delaying the appointment of a substantive DG, the Director of Administration and Human Resources, Alh. Bolakale Abduraheem, said the selection process for a new DG started quite late.
He said, “There is no basis in that allegation because it lacks merit, we have not gotten a substantive DG because the process of appointing a replacement started quite late. The former DG retired in March and the process did not start until Feb. advertisement took its time, interviews, written and oral also took its time and since we don’t have a governing body for the appointment it rests on the minister to appoint a new DG.”
LEADERSHIP also gathered that the management and staff of the agency on Monday, 12th November, 2012 held a town hall meeting to thrash out differences, misconceptions and misinformation between both parties with a resolution to inject new techniques within the agency.
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