From Noah Ocheni, Lokoja
Kogi state government on Tuesday in Lokoja queried the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Usman A. Ibrahim for official misconduct over the recent widely spread reports of bread levy allegedly introduced by the Kogi state government.
In a letter signed by the Kogi state Head of Service,( HoS), Mrs. Deborah Ogunmola, the affected official was directed to respond within 24 hours to exculpate himself on why disciplinary action should not be taken against him for gross misconduct.
The HOS stated that the Permanent Secretary on the 9th of November 2020 signed a letter addressed to the Chairman, Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria (AMBCN) kogi state branch on the subject of introducing an identified consulting company and levies on bread to all bakers and caterers in the state.
Mrs. Ogunmola added that investigation revealed that the official acted without obtaining the approval of the Honourable Commissioner of the ministry and could not provide any file documenting the approval for the dissemination of such information.
The HOS stipulated that despite the official’s denial, his actions contravened the provisions of Public Service Rules, Section 4 – 030402 (1), (N) and (o) which might lead to his dismissal from the service.
