FEMA Bags Golden Award

By: Nkechi Isa

The Centre for Ethics and Self Evaluation (CESVO), a Non-Governmental Organisation has ranked the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Emergency Management Agency, (FEMA), first among State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs) in the anti-corruption index.

The Chief Executive Officer of CESVO, Prince Salihu Musa Yakubu, who conferred the Golden Award on FEMA said, the Agency met the necessary requirements for the award, which include the following thematics; office attendance, staff discipline and welfare, emotional intelligence and due process.

Other thematics which saw FEMA scoring above 70% over other state emergency management agencies are servicom, openness and transparency, procurement and quality assurance.

Others are dedication to humanitarian services, publicity accessibility, self discipline, managerial efficiency, transparency and accountable leadership, ethical uprightness, competency and conflict management.

Prince Salihu noted that most SEMAs have become conduit pipes for stealing from government, especially diversion of relief materials.

“Monies meant for development and the welfare of the people are diverted. So when we see a similar agency becoming vibrant, creative and ethically committed, we take note”, he noted.

“We are not an NGO that honours fraudulent Chief Executives,” he said.

The NGO also conferred on the FEMA Director-General, Alhaji Abbas Idriss ‘Gold Medalist in Public Administration’.

Receiving the awards, Alhaji Abbas Idriss dedicated it to all staff of the Agency.

His words: “If they have not done anything good, I would not have achieved my mandate.”

“The awards would be used as a tool to further improve on our services and ourselves, where we have lapses we intend to improve”, he stressed.

He added that FEMA aspires to surpass the records of any agency that is ahead of FEMA in order to be one of the best in the country in terms of equipment and response..