By Abiodun Folarin
WorldStage— The Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF), has introduced a multi-layer validation process for newly recruited federal government employees, making formal endorsement by their respective Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) a compulsory condition for admission into the Federal Government payroll.
Under the new arrangement, no newly recruited employee will be enrolled in the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) without first appearing on the nominal roll of the relevant MDA and meeting all prescribed validation and eligibility requirements.
The new directive requires MDAs to formally request payroll admission for newly recruited employees, providing recruitment approvals, appointment letters, applicable waivers and other supporting documents for verification by the OAGF.
The OAGF disclosed this in a statement on Monday, signed by its Director of Press and Public Relations, Bawa Mokwa, explaining that the measure is part of efforts to re-engineer payroll processes and strengthen accountability, transparency and efficiency in personnel records management.
Under the revised process, employee records, salary structures, grade levels, steps, allowances and other financial entitlements will be subjected to thorough scrutiny before admission into the payroll.
The verification will also cover statutory information, including Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) details, pension identification numbers, National Housing Fund (NHF) registration and tax records to ensure accurate deductions and timely remittances.
A key feature of the new procedure is the requirement for MDAs to validate and endorse employee records after the initial screening by the OAGF.
The records will be forwarded to the relevant MDA for confirmation and endorsement by the Accounting Officer, Director of Human Resources, Director of Finance and Accounts, and designated Payroll Validating Officer before being returned to the OAGF for final processing.
The Accountant-General of the Federation will retain the final approval authority, with payroll admission subject to satisfactory completion of all validation procedures.
The OAGF said the new arrangement also places greater responsibility on MDAs, as budget owners, to manage and account for their personnel budgets and nominal rolls.
It has consequently directed Permanent Secretaries, Heads of Agencies and other relevant officers to ensure strict compliance with the revised requirements.
The Office warned that applications with incomplete documentation or unresolved discrepancies would be deferred until all prescribed conditions were fulfilled.
It also cautioned that officers responsible for processing and approving payroll admissions would be held accountable for any breach of applicable rules and regulations.
The directive takes immediate effect and applies to all ongoing and subsequent payroll admission processes for newly recruited Federal Government employees.
