Reps summon Adeosun, Ngige, others over non remittances of workers compensation to NSITF

The House of Representatives Ad hoc Committee on non-remittance of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund contributions by the Federal, State and Local Government on Monday summoned the Finance Minister; Kemi Adeosun, Budget and Planning Minister; Senator Udoma Udoma and Minister of Labour and Employment; Chris Ngige.

Others to appear alongside the ministers, at 3pm today, are the Director-General Budget Office, Ben Akabueze, Accountant General of the Federation, Idris Ahmed.

The Deputy Minority Leader, Hon. Chukwuka Onyeama who chaired the committee said it has become expedient and also compelling to invite the ministers and top government functionaries whom he described as key to the probe to make a presentation and clear grey areas.

He explained that their information was necessary to bring balance and enrich whatever details their subordinates and other agencies had provided to the panel previously.

The Committee was set up by the House to investigate the compliance of 1% remittance by employers of labour to the NSITF fund by federal, states and local government councils.

For instance, while the Employment Compensation Act of 2010 stipulates that workers of all categories in federal, states, local government and private sector must contribute, the law establishing Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, exempts it from making any contributions on trusts or any fund.

These contradictions alongside, fear of duplication of remittances are issues which will be cleared according to the panel when the ministers appear.

The panel was worried that so many stakeholders, like governments of some states, and LGs, parastatals,  had not registered with NSITF, thereby owing so much in remittances that workers were to benefit as workplace welfare in times of challenges.

Most of the agencies told the panel that as employees of the federal government and under the IPPS, their contributions were deducted at source and remitted through the Budget and office of the Accountant General of the Federation to the NSITF.

Earlier in an opening remark, Speaker of the House Hon.Yakubu Dogara said that a just and fair wage system is a sine qua-non for a constitutional democracy.

He further stated that the present administration is committed to public sector reforms and added that a good number of MDAs have failed to remit their contributions to the NSITF.

He hinted that there are provisions for compensation of employees by employers for death, injury, mental stress, hearing impairment, occupational disease and healthcare and disability under the Employees Compensation Act 2010.