The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) has introduced new validation requirements for newly recruited Federal Government employees before they can be enrolled in the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS).
The new requirements, which take immediate effect, require Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to ensure that newly recruited employees are captured on their nominal rolls and meet all prescribed eligibility conditions before they can be admitted into the Federal Government payroll. The OAGF said the changes are aimed at improving accountability, transparency and efficiency in the management of personnel records and the government payroll.
Mr Bawa Mokwa, Director of Press and Public Relations at the OAGF, disclosed this in a statement on Monday in Abuja.
Mokwa said the new arrangement requires MDAs, as budget owners, to take greater responsibility for managing and accounting for their personnel budgets and nominal rolls.
He explained that no newly recruited employee would be enrolled on the Federal Government payroll without first being captured on the nominal roll of the relevant MDA and satisfying all prescribed validation and eligibility requirements.
According to him, MDAs are required to formally submit requests for payroll admission to the OAGF, alongside relevant recruitment approvals, appointment letters, applicable waivers and other supporting documents.
He said the documents, together with employee records, salary structures, grade levels, steps, allowances and other financial entitlements, would undergo thorough verification.
Mokwa added that the validation process would also cover statutory details, including Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) information, pension identification numbers, National Housing Fund (NHF) registration and tax records to ensure accurate deductions and timely remittances.
He said employee records would be forwarded to the relevant MDA for confirmation and endorsement by the Accounting Officer, Director of Human Resources, Director of Finance and Accounts, and Payroll Validating Officer before being returned to the OAGF for final processing.
According to him, final admission into the Federal Government payroll would depend on the satisfactory completion of all validation procedures and approval by the Accountant-General of the Federation.
Mokwa urged all Permanent Secretaries, Heads of Agencies and other relevant officers to ensure strict compliance with the new requirements.
He said any employee record with incomplete documentation or unresolved discrepancies would be deferred from payroll admission until all prescribed conditions had been fulfilled.
He also warned that officers responsible for processing and approving payroll admissions would be held accountable for any breach of the applicable rules and regulations.
Mokwa said the new directive takes immediate effect and applies to all ongoing and subsequent payroll admission processes for newly recruited Federal Government employees.
