Recruitment Scandal: Benue Assembly Suspends SUBEB Chairman

Dr. Grace Adagba, the chairman of the State Universal Basic Education Board, or SUBEB, has been asked by the Benue House of Assembly to immediately resign from her position.

During its plenary session on Thursday, the House decided to permit an inquiry into the board’s hiring process.

Peter Ipusu (APC, Katsina-Ala West), the Chief Whip, made the motion that led to the resolution.

Ipusu said that in order to allow for an examination into the issues surrounding the exercise, the House had previously passed a resolution ordering the board chairman to halt the current hiring of primary school teachers. But the order was disregarded.

He emphasized that the chairman issued a statement the day after the resolution was delivered, stating that different local governments had been given revised cut-off marks according to their performance on the Computer-Based Test, or CBT.

The Chief Whip added that other names were later shortlisted by the board for in-person screening.

In addition to being reactionary, he voiced worry that the SUBEB statement was demeaning to the Assembly’s honor and its resolutions.

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The motion’s seconder, Alfred Berger (APC, Makurdi North), said the SUBEB chairman lacked the moral character to continue directing the board’s operations. Berger further emphasized that the process was decentralized and that the board’s Department of Quality Assurance solely oversaw it, noting that the law creating the board gave the Local Government Education Authorities, or LGEAs, the authority to hire instructors.

Majority Leader Saater Tiseer, meanwhile, urged his colleagues to listen to the chairman fairly.

As ordered, Tiseer arrived at the assembly by 10 am on the day she was supposed to appear before the House.

He urged his colleagues to behave in accordance with the Constitution and cautioned them against making decisions based on bias.

Anthony Agom (PDP, Okpokwu) seconded the counter-motion, which said the chairman ought to be given the opportunity to defend herself.

Speaker Hyacinth Dajo then gave John Hwande, the clerk, instructions to divide the House. Five members supported the counter-move, while 21 members supported the original motion.

Dajo stated that the chairman should step aside and hand over to the board’s permanent member 1 to allow the House to carry out its investigation.

He further constituted a seven-member committee to investigate the exercise and report to the House within seven days.