Women Affairs Minister Booed by Staff Over Poor Working Conditions

Employees of the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs on Thursday staged a protest against their minister, Mrs. Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, accusing her of neglect, arrogance, and poor leadership.

The demonstration, which broke out at the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja, saw staff booing the minister and chanting that she “does nothing” to support the day-to-day running of the ministry.

Aggrieved workers alleged that the ministry has been starved of basic work tools, including stationery, despite the minister maintaining a retinue of more than 25 special assistants.

Speaking during the protest, Anne Ojubele, a staff member, lamented the poor working environment. “We don’t have working tools. Even a piece of paper to write on, we don’t have. Most times, we use our personal money to work, and when we complain, she said she is not accountable to us and that we should go and meet President Tinubu to complain,” Ojubele said.

Another worker, Alake Success, described the minister as inaccessible and dismissive. “This woman has refused to mingle with staff. We have taken all necessary steps to work with her, because the beauty of democracy is to have access to your leader, but she thinks she is more special than us. She has more than 25 SAs, yet we don’t have a cordial working relationship. What we want is for her to be posted to another ministry,” Success stated.

In response, the ministry, through a statement signed by the minister’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Jonathan Eze, said while staff have the right to express concerns, such actions must remain within the bounds of professionalism and civil service rules.

The statement added that Mrs. Sulaiman-Ibrahim, a certified Human Resource Manager, “understands that staff welfare, motivation, and professional development are vital to institutional performance” and has continued to push for improvements within the limits of available resources.

It further clarified that the minister is not the Chief Accounting Officer of the ministry, stressing that matters relating to finance and staff administration fall under the purview of the Permanent Secretary, who is responsible for engaging directors, assessing grievances, and providing recommendations.