By Cyber Era Senior Correspondent

The Nigeria Diaspora Commission has come out boldly to accuse the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Ibrahim Ali Isa Pantami, of of literally chasing the Commission away from the Digital Economy Complex, where it is temporarily accommodated  on the Fifth Floor, courtesy of the kind gesture of telecommunications sector regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission(NCC), under the supervision of Dr. Pantami.  Chairman of NiDCOM, Hon Abike Dabiri-Erewa stated this in a documentary to mark NiDCOM’s  one year anniversary broadcast on the Nigerian Television Authority(NTA) on Monday, May 25, 2020. 

Yesterday, the media were awash with communication on behalf of the NCC (many people believe the release was instigated by Dr. Pantami) by its Director of Public Affairs, Dr. Henry Nkemadu disclaiming the allegation by Hon. Dabiri-Erewa that her Commission was sacked from its temporary abode.

“I thought it was a joke because I was in Ethiopia when this happened.  When I got to my office, I could not gain access because security operatives who had directives to eject us were everywhere… Our official equipment and devices belonging to NiDCOM staff were carted away…. After COVID-19, we would look for another office,” Hon Dabiri said.

Instead of responding to us specifically, following our failed efforts, NiDCOM took to its website  www.nidcom.gov.ng to put the records straight.   As we promised, find reproduced below,  for your reading delight, NiDCOM’s own side of the story.

Our attention has been drawn to a statement signed by Dr Henry Nkemadu, Director of Public Affairs of Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) on Sunday May 24, 2020 describing the forcing out of the staff of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) from the occupied fifth floor of NCC Annex Mbora as mere “allegation”.

The fact of the matter is that the said fifth floor was allocated to NIDCOM by NCC Management since June 2019 and handed over by Mrs. Maryam Bayi, its Director Human Resources.

But due to lack of basic facilities in the complex, NIDCOM staff could not move in gradually until October 2019.

But while our Chairman/CEO Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa was on official assignment with Mr. President in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on the 9th of February, the staff were given one week by the Hon. Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Ali Pantami to pack out but within 48 hours of the said quit notice, they were forcefully evicted by security operatives attached to the complex on the orders of the Minister on February 11.

On the allegation that NIDCOM did not move into the offices when allocated, this is untrue, false accusation and contradictory to the statement of NCC to the effect that NIDCOM properties were warehoused and intact in the annex.

Below is our story:

The Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) offered its annex office located at Mbora District Abuja to NiDCOM. This offer was made at one of the meetings held with the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta at Maitama, Abuja in June 2019.

Subsequently, directives were given to the Director Human Resources;  Mrs.  Maryam Bayi who liaised with NiDCOM staff and delivered the building to the Commission. Furthermore, as part of its goodwill gesture, NCC then approved and supplied some furniture items to NiDCOM which was received in December, 2019.

The furniture supplied were similar to those supplied to NCC, so as to fit into the design of the building.

Meanwhile, NiDCOM upon taking delivery of the building made provision of some furniture, equipment and infrastructure in the building. It proceeded to install workstations for over 140 staff of the Commission which was completed by November, 2019.

It also went ahead to install a PABX supported International Call centre in conjunction with Airtel Nigeria Ltd. Likewise, since the executive offices were not tiled, ceramic tiles that were already bought were installed the same week the evacuation notice was given. That is, the Commission commenced the installation of high-quality ceramic tiles in the offices of the executive’s officers on the 5th floor which was occupied by the Commission. This went on alongside painting works, general plumbing and fixing of doors handles etc.

Prior to this, the Department of Technology Transfer & Innovation of the Commission and some staff of Finance department , and administration ,moved into the building at the end of October 2019 while the other departments followed subsequently.

The executive chairman’s office was also in preparation for her to move by mid-February 2020, . This movement into the building required that several computing and electronic devices as well as many sensitive documents and personal belongings were also moved.

On the 9th February, 2020, the Chairman of NiDCOM was notified by the EVC of NCC on the need to evacuate the building within one week without any prior notice. This was said to be on the instruction of the Hon. Minister of Communications & Digital Economy, who also want to occupy the same office space & location.  The Chairman was at that time on an official Presidential delegation to Ethiopia.

By Tuesday 11th February 2020, just two days after the initial notice which gave one-week ultimatum, the staff of NiDCOM were denied access into their offices by armed security men from the NSDC who ordered them not to go into the fifth floor office of the commission.

Thereafter, the Director, Special Duties of NCC, informed NiDCOM staff that he is acting on the instruction from the Hon Minister Pantami to evacuate / refuse them entry into the building until further directive is given.

The NiDCOM staff obliged on the instruction of the executive chairman of the Commission not to resist the directive and complied on the condition that no items in any of the offices will be tampered with until the management of the two agencies are involved and modus-operandi agreed upon.

Unfortunately, on Friday 14th February, after the Chairman returned from Ethiopia a day before , she visited the complex to shockingly find that offices were broken into and all items including the 140 work stations, personal computers, printers, sensitive documents and personal belongings of staff were carted away . The call centre was locked up.

For the avoidance of doubt, the following is the list of some of the items which NiDCOM believes have been carted away.

1. Two units of single face data ports

2. 24 port patch panel

3. 1 Mikrotik RB 750G router

4. 1 Mikrotik cloud router switch

5. 2 Headsets with microphones

6. 2 Digital PABX

7. 1 4u Server racks

8. Patch cables

9. 3 UPS

10. 1 HP desk jet 1012 all in one printer

11. 1 HP desk jet all in one printer (brand-new with the Carton)

12. 1 Mercury UPS (brand-new with the Carton)

13. 1 Ellington extension cable (brand-new)

14. 2 3meter extension boxes

15. Data Antenna

16. 7 HP All in one desktop

17. Camera tripod

18. Cannon 700 digital camera

19. Xenon laptop

20. 144 Work stations & 144 Swivel office chairs

21. 2 Meter mini conference table

22. 6 Conference table chairs

23. 3 Meter executive office furniture set

24. 1 Executive sofa set

25. 4 Executive office furniture set

26. 12 Executive office visitors’ chairs

27. 5 4-seater work stations

28. 2 Reclineable executive chairs

29. 4 Ergonomic executive office chairs with lumbar support

30. Technology Transfer & Innovation department files and documents

31. Legal department files and documents

32. Accounts department files and documents

33. Secretary to the Commission’s office entire files and documents

34. Admin department entire files and documents

35. Diaspora relations department entire files and documents

36. Media department entire files and documents

37. Roll up banners

38. Staff personal belonging such as printers, UPS, extension cables, stationeries (cartons of Chamex papers, staplers, pins, notice board) files & documents & toiletries etc.

39. 140 work stations.

It is our humble opinion that an agency of government ought not to be shabbily treated in a dehumanising manner.

The Hon. Minister, should have acknowledged the fact that the aim of NiDCOM for using the office spaces was not for personal functions but rather for governmental functions with regards to Diaspora engagements.

The Hon. Minister should have seen the need to give the Chairman of the Commission audience so as to let the Commission staff evacuate their belongings by themselves rather than breaking into the offices without their consent.

The Commission still has no access to all equipment, furniture and other items carted away on the instructions of the Minister.

The Hon Minister’s claim that the space was allocated for years is definitely false as NIDCOM is just one year in existence.

We must, however, thank the Chairman/CEO of NIDCOM, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, who despite all these was determined to ensure that the work of the Commission did not suffer in any way through her doggedness and dynamism.

As stated in the Chairman’s remarks as the commission marked its one year in office, the Hon. Minister’s arrogance and utmost humiliation of a government agency is totally unwarranted.

However, the commission has since moved on, and put the ugly incident behind it as it looks forward to settling into any available office space after the Covid 19 lockdown.

Signed

Abdur-Rahman Balogun

Head, Media and Public Relations Unit NIDCOM Abuja .

* Editor’s Note: NiDCOM attached a video to this communication.