Protesting Staff Lock Down RMAFC Office in Abuja
POLITICS DIGEST – Staff of the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) have disrupted activities at the commission when they clashed with the Commissioners on Tuesday.
It was learnt that trouble had been brewing in the commission for some time but it came to a head on Tuesday when afternoon when staff of the Commission said they couldn’t take it anymore.
It was gathered that around 12 noon, the decision was taken by the angry staff to lock the commission down.
The reason for the lockdown was the alleged encroachment into the official duties of the staff who are career civil servants.
An official of the Commission who pleaded for anonymity told journalists that “board members as Commissioners were encroaching on staff official schedule.”
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When the protest started, the angry staff of the Commission locked the main gate used by the commissioners. Caught in the protest was the Chairman of the Commission Engr Elias Mbam who was prevented from leaving the building.
Other commissioners present when the protest started where also prevented from leaving the building while those outside were barred from coming into the Commission.
The security men on duty prevented some journalists from covering the protest and went ahead to seize their phones and deleted the protest photos. They claimed that they did not want the matter going public.
The staff who spoke with journalists in confidence said: “since the board was inaugurated, they have been encroaching into our responsibility. They are policy makers and not policy implementers but they have taken over the day to day running of the Commission from us the official staff.”
He went to say that “today, we want to put an end to it. We locked the gate. No going out for them,” he said.