The Documents showed that Bashir Ahmad, one of the aides of the President Muhammadu Buhari received three months’ salaries in full, from the federal government’s coffers after resigning as a media aide.
According to the Peoples Gazatte revealed that Bashir Ahmad received May, June and July salaries in full after his tender resignation letter in May.
Newsflash Nigeria had reported that Ahmad resigned as Personal Assistant to President Buhari on New Media in May to contest for House of Representatives under the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Ahmad had resigned in line with the presidential directive urging all political office holders wishing to contest elective offices to resign.
The presidential media aide lost his bid to secure the ticket of the All Progressives Congress at the party’s primaries for Gaya, Ajingi, and Albasu Federal Constituency.
On May 11, after turning in his nomination and expression of interest paperwork for the APC House of Representatives ticket, Ahmad deleted the phrase “personal assistant to the president on new media” from his Twitter bio, signalling his departure from the government.
Ahmad removed his designation — personal assistant to the president on new media — from his Twitter bio after submitting his expression of interest and nomination forms for the APC House of Representatives ticket on May 11, signalling his resignation from the regime.
Ahmad began publicly identifying himself as a former presidential aide, during several campaign rallies in his home state of Kano.
However, according to records from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) for federal officials, Ahmad was paid millions of Naira in May, June, and July under his payroll number 372121.
Ahmad’s monthly salary was N1,043,176.88, with his take-home pay totalling N876,738.37 after statutory deductions, according to records.
As a result, Ahmad was paid N3,129,530.64 in illegal salaries for the three months he claimed he resigned and did not work as a federal employee. The illegal payment did not include the various allowances and federal estacodes that Ahmad and other presidential aides received.
Following the president’s acceptance of Ahmad’s resignation in early May, federal payroll regulations required the immediate deletion of his banking information from the system.
Under the condition of anonymity, federal payroll management officials said that some of the ministers forced to resign by the president due to their political ambitions had their banking credentials immediately revoked.
“I had returned the salaries I received during the period I wasn’t in the office,” Ahmad’s said in a message Monday evening.
He declined a request to supply evidence of his refund of the illegal payments to the federal treasury.
Two days ago, President Muhammadu Buhari re-appointed Bashir Ahmad, as Special Assistant to the President on Digital Communications.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, confirmed the appointment in a letter of appointment addressed to Mr Ahmad, dated 20 July.
In the letter sighted by NAN on Sunday in Abuja, Mr Mustapha said the appointment took effect from 19 July.