President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the sack of Prof Charles
Uwakwe as the registrar and chief executive officer of the National
Examinations Council (NECO).
The NECO registrar who has been suspended since 2018 following a
probe of allegations of unsatisfactory conduct against him with one
involving the mismanagement of N25 billion, was dismissed alongside four
members of the management for various offences bordering on financial
impropriety.
The sack notice was conveyed in a letter written by Sunny Echono,
the permanent secretary of the federal ministry of education. Uwakwe was
accused of violating the Public Procurement Act (2007) and pursuant to
PSR 030402 and Part 1 schedule 4 (i) of NECO Establishment Act.
The letter read in parts;
“After due consideration of the investigative panel on the allegation
of unsatisfactory conduct levelled against you and some management
staff of the council, Mr. President in exercise of his powers, has
approved your removal as the Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of
National Examinations Council with effect from the date of your
suspension from duty.”
Uwakwe was directed to hand over all government property in his
custody to Abubakar Gana, who had been appointed as the acting registrar
since 2018.
Other dismissed senior officials of the exam body include Bamidele
Olure, director of finance and accounts; Shina Adetona, head of NECO’s
procurement division; Tayo Odukoya, deputy director; and Babatunde Aina,
head of legal and board matters.
While Olure was sacked after being “found guilty of financial
impropriety and not qualified to Head the Finance and Accounts
Department”, Adetona was dismissed and will face prosecution “for acts
tantamount to fraudulent practices, sabotage, and suppression of
official records.”
The council was also directed to start recovering the “ill-gotten” benefits Odukoya got as the director of M/S I-web Solutions.
