Exposing Presidential Villa Secrets Attract Penalties – Perm Sec To Staff

Tijjani Umar, the Permanent Secretary of the State Department, issued a warning to the Presidential Villa’s personnel on Tuesday about exposing classified material without permission.

Umar warned that releasing confidential information without proper authorization will result in disciplinary action under government regulations.

He gave the warning during Justice Hamza Muazu of the FCT High Court’s administration of the Oath of Secrecy and Declaration of Secrecy to 42 State House workers.

The Permanent Secretary, according to a statement issued to DAILY POST by Patience Tilley-Gyado, Assistant Director Information, administered the oaths to staff members who handle confidential documents.

According to Umar: ‘‘We discovered that due to deployment of officers and retirement a number of our staff need to be placed under the radar so that they will be aware that their jobs, the kind of documents or information they are handling from day to day and beyond, are so important and must be safeguarded.

‘‘That’s the reason we decided to do the needful by administering the Oath of Secrecy, highlighting the importance of letting them know what information they are managing and the consequences of the breach of such information.”

The Permanent Secretary, who disclosed that the exercise will be continuous, expressed delight that so far the State House has not recorded any breach of information.

‘‘We have not had any breach. We don’t anticipate having any breach.

‘‘But then it’s our duty to let them understand that if there is any, there will be consequences after investigations and that also includes after they have retired from the Civil Service,’’ he said.