By Destiny Day
Nigeria’s Head of the Civil Service, Winifred Oyo-Ita, has denied reports alleging that N16 billion meant for Civil Servants Group Life Insurance Scheme (GLIS) was stolen from her office.
An online news platform, the Leading Reporters Nigeria, had reported that Oyo-Ita and others stole the money meant for GLIS.
On Friday in Abuja at the stakeholders’ forum on the review of Public Service Rules (PSR), Oyo-Ita denied the report.
“I will not want to address the very fallacious news item making the rounds as regards N16 billion missing from the GLIS funds. I want to say that whoever started that story does not quite understand how the group life works,” she said.
She added: “The GLIS was set up to be able to ensure that government meets up with benefits of any civil or public servant who, in the process of doing his work as a civil servant, loses his or her life.
“This GLIS is the policy that is carried out with underwriters; these underwriters are being regulated by the National Insurance Commission (NIC).”
The HoS further explained that the NIC regulates premiums that are paid to these underwriters and that the last group life programme was actually handled by the sub-committee of cabinet chaired by the minister of finance at the time.
“The fund for that programme is always domiciled with the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation. The only thing that the Head of Service does is to compile the names of all the Ministries, Department and Agencies(MDAs), that are to be under the group life policy.
“For someone to say that N16 billion has gone missing in my office is strange to me and to many others who understand how the GLIS works,” she said.