Why NHIS executive secretary, Prof Yusuf, was reinstated

The Federal Government reinstated the Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Prof Usman Yusuf because allegations levelled against him couldn’t be substantiated, a source in the Presidency said.

The source who declined being named said the allegations brought against the executive secretary by the United Youth Alliance against Corruption (UYAC) “Could not be substantiated” because “no evidence was brought forward.”

Other allegations “Were obviously concocted as there were evident alterations and mix-ups in dates on some of the petitions,” the presidential source said.

Professor Yusuf was suspended in July last year by the Minister of Health Prof Issac Adewole because of his refusal to oblige to series of monetary requests by the health ministry, Daily Trust investigations have shown.

A committee set up by the minister accused Professor Yusuf of corrupt expenditure on health care training without recourse to any appropriate approving authority. Professor Yusuf, however, denied these allegations.

Official documents analysed by this newspaper show that the NHIS chief incurred the wrath of the ministry for refusing to grant the health ministry’s various requests of sponsorship of its officials to foreign events, hiring of aircrafts for the minister, among others.

On March 18, 2017, Prof Adewole requested for N197 million from the scheme “intervention fund” to execute some projects located across seven Federal Medical Centres, through a letter with reference number DFA/CORR/001, and signed by the ministry’s then permanent secretary Mrs Binta Adamu Bello.

Professor Yusuf, however, relied on a federal government prohibition circular with Ref. No.SGF.6/VIII, dated May 8, 2008, signed by the then Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Ambassador Babagana Kingibe, to reject the minister’s requests.