Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has vowed to sanction Permanent Secretaries who flouted civil service rules and engaged in illegality during the six-month emergency rule in the state.
Fubara stated this while swearing-in a new Permanent Secretary, Austin Ezekiel-Hart, at the Government House, Port Harcourt, on Friday.
He urged Ezekiel-Hart to remain unwavering in professionalism, uphold the values of the civil service, and shun any act of illegality in the discharge of his responsibilities.
Fubara reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to due process and integrity, stressing that the civil service must remain the backbone of good governance.
Reflecting on past challenges during the period of emergency rule, Fubara lamented that some Permanent Secretaries failed in their responsibility to safeguard due process and instead engaged in actions that undermined the principles of the service.
He warned that such conduct is unacceptable and that erring officials would ultimately be held accountable, pointing out that the records of what some Permanent Secretaries did are there and would be revisited at the appropriate time.
‘I have decided that this time around I won’t be doing too much of talking. I would like actions to speak for us. This appointment that you got today is because you chose to be a professional.
‘I have never asked anybody, from my commissioners and anyone that has worked with me to please me; I always request that you do the right thing so that posterity will judge you.
‘For every one of you here, the Permanent Secretaries who were involved in illegality, when I say illegality, I’m not talking of the issue of the emergency rule, it was the situation. But not guiding them to do what is right’.
He continued, ‘Supporting those things that are not the standard of civil service, your punishment will come. Just be prepared. I’m not interested in whatever was done. It wasn’t our fault. It was the situation that warranted it.
‘But it is those things that were not done rightly. Those ones that didn’t follow the normal process, and that you were involved in. I feel sorry for you. The records will be there, and at the right time, I’ll bring them up one after the other against you’.
For the new Permanent Secretary, the Governor said, ‘You, the Permanent Secretary, I don’t want to tell them any story about you, but I’m very sure a good number of you know that he stood his ground as a professional. Knowing that you do the right thing, defend your superior. It doesn’t matter, but do it in the right way’.
The Governor praised Ezekiel-Hart for his professionalism and refusal to compromise his integrity despite pressures, noting that his steadfastness and principled stance earned him the new appointment.
Fubara emphasised that civil servants must remain consistent in their service, prioritising truth, fairness, and due process above personal or political interests.
He stressed that no directive, regardless of its source, should override established rules and procedures, assuring that his administration would never pressure officers to act outside the law.
