Reps panel invites labour minister over failure to constitute NSITF board

A house of representatives committee has invited Muhammadu Dingyadi, minister of labour and employment, over alleged failure to inaugurate the board of the Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF).

Mike Etaba, chairman of the committee on public petition, issued the summon on Tuesday, following a petition by Obasi-Pherson Help Foundation, a non-governmental organisation.

The foundation said President Bola Tinubu appointed a managing director for the fund but was yet to name and inaugurate the board several months after.

“This is a huge aberration as the absence of the board is giving way to a wide range of illegalities in the running of the affairs of the agency,” the NGO’s petition reads.

Etaba said the minister needs to explain why a board has not been constituted for NSITF.

“The government is being indicted, so it is only logical that the minister clears the air on the matter,” he said.

The committee has also invited Faleye Mayomi, managing director of NSITF, over a petition by the Advancement of Social Justice and Economic Development Initiative (ASJEDI) on alleged violation of its projects clearance regulations.

Etaba said the committee’s mandate is to “serve Nigerians efficiently and ensure the right thing is done always”.