On Monday, President Muhammadu Buhari ordered the disengagement of the former chairman of the defunct Presidential Task Force on Pension Reforms, Abdulrasheed Maina, from the civil service. Buhari’s order followed Maina’s recall to the Ministry of Interior and promotion last week by the Head of Service of the Federation.

The Nigeria Police Force and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) declared the disgraced pension boss wanted in February 2013 and November 2015 respectively. In February 2016 Maina, who fled the country was, declared wanted by the International Police (Interpol).

Maina was accused of engaging in a massive pension fraud scheme amounting to more than N100 billion, and was subsequently dismissed in 2013 by the Federal Civil Service Commission following a recommendation by the Office of the Head of Service. In 2013, Maina, while responding to a call by the Senate ordering his arrest said, he was innocent and ready for prosecution. Former president Goodluck Jonathan directed that the ex-pension be disciplined after he refused to appear in court and absconded from his duty post. In his defence, Maina argued that he had no access to public funds, accusing officials of the Office of the Head of Service of stealing sixty billion naira in pension funds before the establishment of his task force.

The furore over Maina‘s recall into the civil service sparked widespread criticism across Nigeria, with many political observers describing it as a stain on Buhari‘s “anti-corruption” war. In an attempt to wash his hands off the scandal, Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, while reacting to Maina‘s deployment to his ministry said he knew nothing about the posting adding that no “Minister could exercise such powers or influence the process of discipline, re-engagement, and deployment of any civil servant to his Ministry or any other Ministry for that matter”. The Minister said, “such responsibility is that of the Federal Civil Service Commission and/or the Head of Civil Service”.

Denials and counter-denials is gradually becoming the hallmark of this presidency.

On Sunday night, Okoi Obono-Obla, Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Prosecution, while attempting to defend Maina‘s reinstatement has said the wanted ex-pension boss was yet to be adjudged guilty by a court of law. Obla said, “It is only a court of competent jurisdiction that can adjudge anyone guilty. Are you sure that there is a charge against this man? If there is a charge against him, has it been brought to the notice of the ministry where he works? Has it been brought to the attention of the Federal Civil Service Commission? It is not enough to say this man has been accused of committing an offence. I want you to convince me that he has been found guilty by a court of law.”

President Buhari in his usual manner released a lame statement through his media aide, Femi Adesina.

The statement said the president has sent a memo to the Head of Civil Service of the Federation demanding a full report of the circumstances of Maina‘s recall and posting to the Interior Ministry.

As much as Maina‘s sack is a welcome development, President Buhari in his statement alluded to the position of many that he is not in control of his government. Buhari admitted to having no knowledge of Maina‘s recall into the civil service. One wonders what the outcome of the investigation into this matter will reveal, seeing that this presidency has set a precedence of not acting on reports of investigations. A case in point is the Osinbajo report on the suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, and the suspended Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Ayo Oke. Nigerians are yet to be informed on the outcome of the panel’s investigation months after the Vice President submitted it to Buhari.

Buhari has to tell Nigerians how a wanted fugitive got reinstated into the civil service without his knowledge. Why did the president decide to let go of Maina immediately without ensuring that the Head of Service, who ordered his reinstatement is out of a job? It’s absolutely disheartening that this administration which campaigned on the mantra of change and fighting the anti-corruption war is turning around to become a stench in the nostrils of the citizenry. Why on earth does the minister of Interior still have a job? Maina did not drop from the sky when he returned to the country. He came through the borders, and someone must have let him in. Who is that individual, and why have heads not rolled?

This sack has a semblance to that of Lawal and provides little or no hope to Nigerians on the president’s anti-corruption war.

Maina has been sacked, but Buhari needs to clear out members of his cabinet undermining him in the presidency.