Federal Staff Loans Board: Civil Servants Cry Out: Give Us Our Houses!

All is no longer well with subscribers of the Federal Staff Loans Board, the arm of government agency saddled with the task of ensuring that Federal Civil Servants get their private houses. The scheme conceived by the Federal Government in good faith appears to have been hijacked by powerful interest who ensured that funds allocated to the board—often running into billions—are syphoned through sharp practices. This unhealthy practice which rose to precarious dimensions in the last 10 years under the tutelage of former Executive Secretary Hajia Hannatu Fika, saw billions of subscribers funds frittered away through cronies and associates using phoney companies while abandoning and ignoring genuine Builders. This action inevitably resulted in a financial logjam, loss of huge sums and no house for anyone. As of this year 2020, few subscribers have been given their houses; yet, every month deductions are carried out from their salaries while their housing loans paid to crooked developers. “Nobody has moved into any house”, said Steven Okunbor, a staff of one of the Federal Agencies. “We have tried, but there is no headway; nobody is ready to talk to us and our developers have absconded with our loans”, he lamented. Mr Steven regretted that more than 6 years after his loan was paid out to his developer, no word has been heard from them. “It is a shame that a government Institution like this Loan Board cannot rein in their developers”, said another fellow who is still a tenant despite his contributions deducted at source. “They know how to deduct our money but don’t know how to monitor their developer to deliver on their promise”, he disclosed. Today, many civil servants who participated in the scheme are still tenants; a good number of them have retired from service. “Hannatu Fika who championed this thievery has left the scene with all the problems she caused,” said another civil servant in the humanitarian agency. “It is not right for the government to ignore the plight of the people; it is not right”, he stated. Another dimension to this gaffe is the failed FISH—a programme that the former head of service Oyo-Ita used to deceive civil servants. “They call it Federal Integrated Staff Housing Programme, but in reality, it was just another white elephant project”, declared Mr Felix Ugoh. He explained that after using the scheme to collect money from both subscribers and developers, the next thing was a tale of woes and lamentation. “Nobody got anything; we were all shortchanged…sort of duped”, regrets Mr Thompson Igiehon. “At a stage, they took the scheme like game…a sort of gamble. It is a big disappointment that such things were allowed”, he told our reporters. At the Loans Board, the environment was gloom, desperate and tired personnel’s moved around, forlorn and hopeless. According to reports, only a handful of privileged persons have been paid for the last two years. “They will tell you that there is no money and before you know it, files would move around; they are so secretive and negative”, said Mr Igiehon. Investigations also showed that despite the appointment of a new Executive Secretary to inject new life into the Board, the atmosphere is still one of “wait and see”, because remnants of the vindictive and reclusive Hannatu Fika are still around,  some of them now directors. “If the new Executive Secretary is bold enough, we urge him to carry out a purge of the establishment”, said Mr Igiehon. “You can’t succeed with old wines in new bottles; they are the same ten and ten pence; they can never change” rued Mr Igiehon. Generally, the idea of using the Loans Board to provide houses for Nigerian civil servants appears to have been defeated. At the last count, a group of subscribers are planning to go to court to compel the loans board to hold developers accountable—or refund their money. “That’s is the option we are going to take”, disclosed Mr Igiehon. “The project has failed and we need our money back”, he stated. However, efforts to reach the new Executive Secretary has proved difficult; but further investigation has shown the new helmsman to be responsible and capable of turning the ugly tide of shame.