The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for the Bayelsa State House of Assembly in Ekeremor Constituency 2 Mitin Living Ebikebena has been brought before the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) for allegedly receiving double salaries.
Goldennewsng reports that In a petition that was sent to CCB by Akporhona Noah and Seiyefa Captain through their legal firm, A.O. Ishokare Esq., they asked for an investigation into the claim that Ebikebena, a Federal Polytechnic Ekowe employee, broke the rules of the code of conduct for public servants.
In the petition, which was submitted on December 9 and received by CCB on December 19, the company asserted that the PDP candidate had broken Section One, Paragraph Two, of the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution of the Federal Government of Nigeria, as Amended, in the 1999 election.
It was discovered that Ebikebena has been working as an accountant at the polytechnic since July 10, 2014, and that she is currently earning salary grade GL 09 CONTEDISS step five.
According to the petition, The aforementioned Mitin Living Ebikebena accepted another salaried position without resigning from the Federal Polytechnic Ekowe. He worked for the Bayelsa State Petroleum Taskforce from 2016 to 2019, as well as the Bayelsa State Governor’s Special Representative, Ekeremor, from 2019 to 2020.
“From November 2020 to April 2020, Mitin Living Ebikebena was employed by the Bayelsa State Government as the Director of Ekeremor Constituency 2 at the Bayelsa State Centre for Youth Development. The Government of Bayelsa paid him a salary and other benefits for every job he held.
“Our clients believe that Mitin Living Ebikebena, who is a public officer pursuant to paragraph 15, Part two of the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, has grossly violated the provisions of the constitution” by simultaneously being employed by the federal and state governments and receiving emoluments from both tiers of government.
The petition stated, citing part two of the Fifth Schedule, ” “A public officer shall not receive or be paid emoluments of any public office at the same time as he receives or is paid the emoluments of any other public officer,” despite the generality of the preceding paragraph.
The law firm asked the CCB to use its constitutional authority to investigate the claim and take the necessary actions in accordance with the law.
