The Federal Government has tightened control over civil service deployments, ordering Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to stop moving staff from recognised professional pools without explicit authorization. The directive, issued by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) via an August 24, 2026 circular (Ref. No. HCSF/3065/V.I/275), comes as President Bola Tinubu’s administration expands efforts to eliminate ghost workers and fraudulent entities within the public sector.
Addressed to senior officials including the Chief of Staff to the President, ministers, permanent secretaries, and service chiefs, the circular warns against violating internal deployment rules. The OHCSF noted that several MDAs continue to relocate pool officers locally, breaching a previous ban outlined in Circular Ref. No. HCSF/3065/VI/218 from January 2, 2025.
According to the latest instructions, “Officers posted to Ministries, Extra-Ministerial Departments and Agencies by the OHCSF or any other recognised professional pool shall remain in the offices, departments, divisions, units or sections to which they were specifically posted, in accordance with their posting instructions.” The document adds that “Such officers shall not be redeployed internally without the prior approval of the relevant posting authority.”
While permanent secretaries retain the authority to shift local staff within their respective MDAs, professional pool personnel remain bound to their original assignments. An exception is made for officers on Grade Levels 07 to 14, who may be placed in vacant positions internally provided the move stays strictly within their specific pool or cadre. Where operational needs require a shift outside these rules, “the matter shall be referred to the appropriate posting authority for review and necessary approval,” with the OHCSF mandating “strict compliance.”
The circular outlines the specific authorities managing these professional pools:
- OHCSF (Career Management Office): Administrative, Executive (General), Store, Stock Verifier, Confidential Secretary, System/Programme Analyst, Statistical/Data Processing, and Library Officers.
- Federal Ministry of Justice (Solicitor-General/Permanent Secretary): State Counsels.
- Bureau of Public Procurement (Director-General): Procurement Officers.
- Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation (Permanent Secretary): Information, Press, and Public Relations Officers.
- Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (Accountant-General): Account Officers and Executive Officers (Accounts).
- Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation (Auditor-General): Resident Auditors.
This administrative tightening follows a August 28 directive from President Tinubu ordering a forensic audit of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) alongside all federal ministries and agencies. The audit stems from an Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) report detailing systemic vulnerabilities and the operation of fake agencies.
Recent ICPC investigations uncovered unauthorized bodies functioning alongside legitimate government structures. In July, probes revealed that the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council was fictitious, operating with a forged appointment letter. By August 21, the ICPC exposed another unauthorized body, the National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office, leading to the arrest of its promoter and the suspension of three permanent secretaries in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
The upcoming forensic audit will review identity and bank controls, compile a legal inventory of all existing federal entities, and evaluate integration points across government payment platforms including GIFMIS, Remita, and the Treasury Single Account. By formalizing deployment channels, the OHCSF aims to prevent informal staff movements into unverified offices while establishing clear accountability across the civil service.
