Unease As CEO Of Para-Military Agency ‘Elongates’ Tenure

Staff of the National Park Service who are holders of the Higher National Diploma degrees are unhappy that Ibrahim Goni is still the Conservator General and Chief Executive Officer of the agency after exceeding the mandatory 60 years of age and 35 years in public service.

Goni, who started his working career in 1983 at Kainji Lake National Park, New Bussa, Niger State, has now spent 38 years in service. He’s also above 63 years having been born in 1953, according to his bio published on the NPS website.

He was posted to the NPS headquarters Abuja as Assistant Conservator General (Ecology & Resource Management) in 2014. But on April 14, 2017, when he had just one more year to serve before retirement, he was appointed the Conservator General.

The NPS is categorized as a para-military agency like the Nigerian Immigration Services, the Nigeria Customs Service, the Nigerian Correctional Service and others.

But unlike other para-military agencies in the country, the NPS under Goni has refused to implement a Federal Government directive abolishing the dichotomy between HND and University degree.

In a letter sent to THE WHISTLER by a group of NPS employees across the country who entered the service with the HND certificate, they ask why the NPS has refused to abolish the dichotomy.

“All other paramilitary agencies have obeyed the directives of the federal government on the abolition of the HND/BSc disparity and seniority restored except the National Park Service.

“The headquarters are quick to implement any directive that doesn’t favour the staff but are reluctant to implement the one that will improve work efficiency, productivity and upliftment of its staff,” the employees alleged.

They claimed that the disparity has led to stagnation of many of them at Compass 12, which had also promoted a situation of low morale when junior staff overtake their senior in promotion because they have university degrees.

Goni has also been accused of not approving promotion of staff as and when due while morale is said to be generally low because of his leadership style.
They alleged that the headquarters has “highjacked” the functions of the seven Unit Parks under the NPS, rendering them redundant and killing morale of staff.

“We want the Park Service to be moving in tandem with other sister paramilitary agencies in term of staff welfare and exposure,” the NPS staff stated.

While reacting to the allegation of Goni overstaying in service, Yakubu Haruna Zull, the Public Relations Officer of NPS, told THE WHISTLER that the office of CG/CEO is a political office and has nothing to do with the number of years spent in service.

On the disparity between HND/Bsc, he said it is the 14-member Governing Board of the NPS that is responsible for determining the policy direction of the Service, and not the CG.

The NPS was established to, among others; preserve and manage vegetation and wild animals in the national parks.