"Chief of Staff isn't an employment agency" — Osita Chidoka says Nigeria has a big problem if this appointment letter is genuine (see video)

• Osita Chidoka says the Chief of Staff has no legal or constitutional power to employ anyone into Nigeria's civil service.

• He insisted that appointment letters should come through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), not the Chief of Staff.

• Chidoka said if government agencies accepted such a letter from the Chief of Staff's office, "something is fundamentally wrong with Nigeria."

• He said the ICPC should investigate the PFIPC DG appointment controversy and determine what happened.

Former Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka, has weighed in on the controversy surrounding the alleged appointment of the Director-General of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee (PFIPC), saying the office of the Chief of Staff to the President has no power to appoint or employ anyone into the civil service.

Speaking during an interview, Chidoka described the situation as a worrying sign of how the role of the Chief of Staff is being misunderstood in Nigeria.

According to him, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) is the official who oversees the machinery of government and handles appointment processes across the federal civil service.

"Does the chief of staff to the president have the right or power to appoint or employ anybody in civil service? No way."

He added: "This chief of staff business is getting out of hand in Nigeria. He is a staff of the president. He is the chief organiser of the president's office. He has no business with the government machinery."

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Chidoka explained that while the Chief of Staff works closely with the President and even attends meetings of the Federal Executive Council in an ex-officio capacity, the office is not responsible for issuing employment or appointment letters.

Instead, he said the SGF coordinates government bureaucracy, supervises permanent secretaries and oversees the administrative processes that make such appointments possible.

"The Secretary to the Government of the Federation is the person that has the bureaucracy. He has seven permanent secretaries. He interacts with the government agencies," Chidoka said.

He further noted that when the federal government creates committees or councils, they are usually administered through the SGF's office, with the necessary civil service structures already in place.

Reacting to claims that the controversial appointment letter originated from the Office of the Chief of Staff, Chidoka said that alone raises serious questions, regardless of whether the document eventually turns out to be genuine or forged.

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"There is no way that the chief of staff office can write a letter."

He continued: "So meaning that if the letter of appointment in question that has been going on says from the chief of staff's office and the head of service office accepted it and all the other agencies accepted it, then something is fundamentally wrong with Nigeria."

Chidoka expressed confidence that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) would determine what really happened.

"So either original or fake, the letter shouldn't have ever emanated from the chief of staff office. Absolutely."

His comments come amid the ongoing controversy over the appointment of the PFIPC Director-General, a matter that has sparked debate about due process and the constitutional roles of key offices within the Presidency.