AGF Attributes Tertiary Institutions’ Salary Crisis to Hasty Payroll Migration

The Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, has squarely laid the blame for the persistent salary payment crisis plaguing federal tertiary institutions on a hasty and uncoordinated migration of their payroll system. The AGF made this assertion during a recent interactive meeting in Abuja with vice-chancellors, rectors, provosts, and heads of regulatory bodies of these institutions.

Ogunjimi revealed that the move from the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) to the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) failed to adhere to crucial technical transition guidelines. This procedural oversight, according to the AGF, resulted in widespread disruptions to salary payments, third-party deductions, and pension remittances, triggering a wave of complaints across the education sector.

Since assuming office, Ogunjimi stated that his office has been inundated with complaints from various stakeholders, including Pension Fund Administrators, State Internal Revenue Services, microcredit institutions, and staff unions, all citing delays in salary payments and the non-remittance of statutory deductions.

He explained that an Inter-ministerial Technical Committee had earlier been established to design a seamless migration framework. This committee had recommended that the October 2024 payroll be processed on the IPPIS platform, while all staff data were to be validated and uploaded onto GIFMIS by October 31, 2024. The committee further advised that trial payrolls for November and December be prepared and verified by IPPIS but processed through GIFMIS, with a final handover by December 31, 2024.

“Failure to comply with the recommendation to prepare a trial payroll for the remaining two months (November and December) of the year 2024 along with IPPIS and the abrupt migration to GIFMIS in the last quarter of the year, heightened some of the challenges experienced,” Ogunjimi stated.

Despite holding several meetings with institutional bursars and approving a collaborative training programme with the Association of Bursars of Nigerian Universities to assist institutions grappling with GIFMIS-related issues, the AGF admitted that complaints persist. The recent meeting was therefore convened to provide a platform for all stakeholders to collectively resolve outstanding concerns, with feedback gathered intended to inform the design of future training programs.

The Auditor-General for the Federation, Dr. Shaakaa Chira, who was also present, identified recurring issues during audits of tertiary institutions, such as overpayment of salaries, irregular appointments, non-remittance of statutory deductions, violation of integration protocols, and unauthorized allowances. He pledged his office’s readiness to collaborate with the OAGF and other stakeholders to improve systems performance and service delivery in the education sector.