National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission Warns MDAs on Unapproved Salary Structures and Allowances

The Chairman, National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC), Major General Junaidu S. Bindawa (Rtd), PhD, has observed that some agencies are not cooperating with the Commission in its oversight role of ensuring the correct implementation of salary approvals. 

He said some agencies had continued to operate unapproved salary structures and allowances.

Major General Bidawa (Rtd) made this known when he led some Management Staff of the Commission on a courtesy visit to the Accountant-General of the Federation.

‘’In view of this, I proposed stronger collaboration with the Office to address such infractions, including drawing the OAGF’s attention to non-compliant agencies and seeking appropriate intervention or sanctions’’ he said.

A statement from the Head of Press and Protocol, Emmanuel Njoku, said the visit aimed to strengthen institutional collaboration between the Commission and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF), particularly to address emerging challenges in public service salary administration.

In his remarks, the Accountant General of the Federation, Dr Shamseldeen B. Ogunjimi, highlighted the critical role of his Office as the Treasurer of the Federation, particularly in the management of government receipts and withdrawals.

He noted that the OAGF has an overarching view of revenue generation across the public service and emphasised the need to verify claims of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) made by agencies, especially where such claims form the basis for their remuneration review by the Commission.

Dr Ogunjimi expressed appreciation for the peculiar allowance previously approved for staff of his Office by the Commission. However, he appealed for a review of the allowance, to bring it in line with those applicable to staff of some agencies of government in the financial sector.

The AGF assured the delegation of the OAGF’s readiness to support the Commission in identifying and addressing infractions in public service salary administration. He also welcomed the proposed collaboration and indicated that his Office would be available to provide professional assistance to the Commission when required.

The proposed partnership is expected to support the Commission’s efforts to address unauthorised salary practices, improve the verification of revenue-related claims when processing requests for review of remuneration, and promote a more data-driven and productivity-oriented approach to salary administration.