From Benin with fraud: DG secures FIIRO top job without claimed PhD certificate TuesdayMotivation
The Director-General of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi, Dr Chima Igwe, has come under probe after failing to present his PhD certificate more than 18 years after claiming to have bagged the degree.
The issue became contentious when the tenure of the immediate past Director-General of FIIRO, Prof. Gloria Elemo, ended and there was the need for a new head for the institute.gathered that the governing board of the institute, while shopping for Elemo’s replacement, called for the files of senior officers of the agency.
The chairman also attached to the letter findings of the establishment committee of the board on the matter.A directive from a top official of the ministry asked the outgoing DG to hand over to the most senior director in line with circulars of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.Information on the LinkedIn account of Igwe showed that he joined FIIRO in June 1991 and has worked in the institute for 28 years.
“They saw that there was no certificate in his file and what he had for the past 18 years is an attestation letter. So, they insisted that he get the certificate. If you graduated 18 years ago, your certificate should have been signed by the vice-chancellor at that time. It is not the new vice-chancellor that will sign your certificate. And the school should have it in their records if it has not been issued to you.
“We were surprised when he came out with the PhD attestation letter within a short while of claiming he was running the programme. Because of that, he was promoted above officers who were ahead of him.” A source in the board, who did not want to be quoted, said the matter was taking on a life of its own.
Our correspondent, who obtained a copy of the document from a credible source, observed that it stated that Igwe enrolled for a thesis in the school.The attestation letter was purportedly issued by the Deputy Director of the Doctoral School of Pure and Applied Sciences, Abomey-Calavi University, Prof. Valentin Wotto.
learnt that the governing board would have a meeting early this month and the matter would be discussed.The spokesperson for the Ministry of Science and Technology, Abdulganiyu Aminu, toldHe explained that the ministry only appointed Igwe in acting capacity pending when a substantive DG would be appointed.asked how Igwe had been in the system without a proper PhD certificate for 18 years, he said the matter was already being investigated by the ICPC.
He confirmed that PhD was a prerequisite for promotion from principal officer to chief officer, adding that all members of staff were aware of the rule before joining the institute. “His score was too low. If not, he would have gone to a Nigerian school, which would be easier for him. But to travel to Benin Republic, a French-speaking country coupled with the distance, shows desperation to meet up with the PhD requirement of the institute,” the source said.
She said she could not recall the purported meeting with the former FIIRO DG, Elemo, during which she allegedly assisted in getting the attestation letter from the school.
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