President Bola Tinubu, has placed the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Rural Electrification Agency, Ahmed Salihijo, on an indefinite suspension from office, with three other executive directors of the group.
Moreso, “new findings unearthed during a comprehensive investigation into the financial activities of the Rural Electrification Agency,” declared in a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale.
The statement is titled, ‘President Tinubu suspends Rural Electrification Agency managing director and team from office.’
Apart from Salihijo, the President also suspended Olaniyi Netufo Executive Director, Corporate Service; Barka Sajou, the Executive Director, Technical Service, and Sa’adatu Balgore, the Executive Director, Rural Electrification Fund.
Tinubu also ordered a more thororugh investigation into the conduct of the officials in “a fraudulent mis-expenditure amounting to over N1.2bn over the past two years, some of which has already been recovered by anti-graft agencies,” Ngelale revealed.
Therefore, the President appointed a new management team of the Agency who will serve in acting capacity with immediate effect.
They include: Abba Aliyu as Managing Director/CEO, Ayoade Gboyega as Executive Director, Corporate Services, Umar Umar as Executive Director, Technical Services, Doris Uboh as Executive Director, Rural Electrification Fund and Olufemi Akinyelure as Head of Project Management Unit, Nigeria Electrification project.
The President stressed that, “expects all appointees in his administration to uphold the highest standards of transparency and accountability in the discharge of their duties and reiterates his determination to elevate the yearnings of Nigerians for good governance and qualitative service delivery above the narrow interests of individuals who are entrusted to provide critical services to the Nigerian people.”
