The Federal Government has moved to tighten control over the deployment of civil servants across Ministries, Departments and Agencies as investigations into fake government agencies, ghost workers and weaknesses in the public service continue.
The Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation has directed MDAs to stop the internal movement of officers who were posted through recognised professional pools unless approval is first obtained from the authority responsible for their deployment.
The directive was contained in a circular dated August 24, 2026, with reference number HCSF/3065/V.I/275.
The circular was issued to senior government officials, including ministers, permanent secretaries, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, service chiefs, the Inspector-General of Police and heads of major Federal Government institutions.
The OHCSF said it had noticed that some MDAs were moving officers assigned to them through professional pools without obtaining the required approval.
“The Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation has observed that some Ministries, Extra-Ministerial Departments and Agencies have continued to redeploy officers posted to them from the professional pools of the OHCSF and other recognised pool offices without the approval of the relevant posting authorities,” the circular stated.
The new order means that officers posted to a particular office, department, division, unit or section cannot simply be transferred internally by the management of the receiving MDA.
The OHCSF said the practice violates an earlier circular issued on January 2, 2025, which prohibited the internal redeployment of officers belonging to professional pools.
Under the latest directive, permanent secretaries retain the power to deploy officers who are on the local staff establishment of their respective MDAs.
Such deployment, however, must be connected to the operational needs of the organisation and the efficient delivery of government services.
A different rule applies to officers who enter an MDA through the OHCSF or another recognised professional pool.
The circular stated, “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.”
It further stated, “Such officers shall not be redeployed internally without the prior approval of the relevant posting authority.”
The Federal Government, however, made an exception for certain officers on Grade Level 07 to 14 who are posted to fill vacancies within departments.
According to the directive, such officers may be moved to divisions, units or sections where vacancies exist, as long as the new deployment remains within the scope of their professional pool or cadre.
Where a change becomes necessary because of operational requirements, the MDA is expected to seek approval from the relevant authority.
The circular stated, “Where operational exigencies necessitate any review of such postings, the matter shall be referred to the appropriate posting authority for review and necessary approval.”
The OHCSF ended the directive with a firm instruction to the affected institutions.
“Please ensure strict compliance.”
The circular also identifies the recognised professional pools and the government authorities responsible for them.
The OHCSF, through the Career Management Office, oversees cadres including Administrative Officers, Executive Officers (General), Store Officers, Stock Verifier Officers, Confidential Secretaries, System/Programme Analysts, Statistical/Data Processing Officers and Library Officers.
The Federal Ministry of Justice manages the pool of State Counsels, while the Bureau of Public Procurement is responsible for Procurement Officers.
The Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation oversees Information, Press and Public Relations Officers.
The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation manages Account Officers and Executive Officers (Accounts), while the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation is responsible for Resident Auditors.
Other professional pools may also be recognised where they have the required official approval and a clearly defined managing authority.
President Bola Tinubu has already ordered a comprehensive forensic audit of Federal Government systems following findings by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission on fake agencies, ghost workers and other control failures.
The audit covers the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System, Federal Government agencies, ministries and their internal controls.
The Presidency said the exercise would examine how fictitious or ineligible persons were enrolled in government systems. It will also review identity, biometric and bank-account controls linked to government personnel and payroll systems.
The investigation will further examine the relationship between IPPIS and other government platforms, including the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System, Remita, the Treasury Single Account and the Sub-Treasury Single Account.
According to the Presidency, the review will determine whether irregularities were caused by weaknesses in government systems, failures in administrative processes, poor segregation of duties or deliberate attempts to bypass existing controls.
The audit will also produce a definitive inventory of Federal Government ministries, departments, agencies, commissions, councils, parastatals and other government bodies.
Authorities will verify the legal status of those bodies and examine how they obtained recognition, access to government facilities, budgetary consideration, correspondence privileges and government systems.
President Tinubu directed the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, to oversee and coordinate the exercise.
The Presidency said the audit is expected to “strengthen the architecture of Government, close systemic loopholes, improve data verification and reconciliation, reinforce accountability, and ensure that only duly constituted entities and eligible personnel have access to Government resources.”
The move followed a series of discoveries by the ICPC.
In July, Tinubu ordered the commission to investigate the so-called Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council after the Presidency declared that the organisation had never been established by the Federal Government.
The investigation centred on claims of forged government documents and the alleged use of a false presidential appointment to obtain official recognition and other benefits.
The Presidency had said the body had no basis in law, presidential instrument, executive approval or any other lawful act of government.
The investigation later led to the discovery of another purported government organisation.
On August 21, the ICPC announced that it had uncovered the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office.
The commission alleged that the organisation had been allocated office space within the premises of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation despite lacking legitimate government status.
The ICPC identified George Buchi Nwabueze as the promoter of the organisation and alleged that senior public servants were involved in the circumstances surrounding its operations.
Following the revelation, Tinubu ordered the arrest of Nwabueze and the suspension of three permanent secretaries in the OSGF.
The development raised fresh questions about how an organisation without established legal status could gain access to government premises and operate around official institutions.
The issue also increased scrutiny of the procedures used to create, recognise and manage government entities and personnel.
The OHCSF directive now places additional emphasis on the authority responsible for posting professional officers.
