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Integrity Icon Nigeria 2021

Adigwe-Uzor Esther

Adigwe-Uzor Esther,
Commandant and Zonal Head of Department for Critical National Assets and Infrastructure,
NSCDC

Adigwe-Uzor Esther started working as a public servant in 2004 when she was enlisted into the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps. She joined the service with the intention to prove that women in uniform can be diligent and resourceful. For this reason, she set a high moral standard of being punctual, diligent, and committed to her work.
Her flair for writing, especially reports and speeches has stood her out in the organization. Over time, she had become known to be not only a dutiful follower to her superiors but also a good leader to her subordinates.
When one wants honesty and accountability, more often than not, she has always been the person to be called on. When she is saddled with the responsibility of posting or transferring personnel from one department or unit to another, she does so without fear or favor, bearing at the back of my mind that the greater good of the organization is paramount.
In carrying out her job, it has been a common experience to find personnel clamoring and lobbying for perceived juicy or more glamorous stations to be posted, even when they do not have the prerequisite qualification to be there. Lobbyists come bearing gifts but she has been known to shun such because she believes that a compromised mind cannot deliver effectively in the workplace. Other pressures come from superiors who have favorites and wish to overturn my decisions to favor their wards; this is a tussle which she has often won through my tenacity and doggedness in projecting the image, core values, and interest of the organisation as the topmost priority.
She has been called upon often time to defend the decisions and she is glad to note that after all grilling and worrisome back and forth questions and responses, her superiors always agreed with Her.
She had received only verbal commendations from her superiors for her diligence and uprightness.
She has dedicated herself both in my private and public lives to exemplify and personify diligence, and fairness.
Barr. Emem Ette

Barr. Emem Ette,
Head of the Akwa Ibom state Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) response department

Barr. Emem Ette rose through the ranks from State Counsel in 2001 to the current head of department in charge of sexual offenses and other gender-based violence. She is well known for her diligence in dealing with cases of SGBV. In the past, she has worked with the likes of CSP Francis Erhabor (a 2019 Integrity Icon).
To ensure transparency and accountability in her office, she provides prompt, accurate, and complete information about the activities of the office to the government, stakeholders, and the public. Her office publishes the Sexual Offenders Register and she ensures that all details are captured without fear or favour. She also ensures that the Register and other data/reports are accessible to the public during working hours. She doubles as the Chairperson of FIDA, ensuring proper accounts are kept.
In her bid for justice, she has been faced with threats and pressure to drop rape cases and other severe domestic violence cases. She has endured a kidnap attempt and bribery attempts from a family of rape suspects for the release of their relatives.
She credits her superiors for giving her liberty to run the department and their trust in her judgment and integrity to handle cases without bias. In her words: “I would love to collaborate with Accountability lab Nigeria. If we have civil or public servants who render their services in honesty, truth and are transparent and ready to be held accountable for their every action, then Nigeria will be better.”
Ibrahim Musa Kirfi

Ibrahim Musa Kirfi,
Chairman of the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE) under the Corporate Affairs Commission

Ibrahim Musa Kirfi left his job as a secondary school teacher for an administrative officer/lecturer position at a polytechnic. As a new staff, he was assigned multiple tasks that were not part of his job description but he never complained. Unknown to him, the Registrar was closely monitoring his progress.
In 2003, a highly coveted job opportunity for a pioneer company secretary at a consultancy firm came up, the Registrar decided that Ibrahim was the man for the job. When he eventually came to the Corporate Affairs Commission, he found another opportunity to serve, helping staff to process difficult booklets at the Joint Consultative Council (JCC) out of a free will. This increased his popularity amongst them which influenced his win during the Secretary elections.
He served unopposed as the Secretary of the union all through his 6-year tenure due to the confidence others had in him. He later contested for the chairmanship position against four other candidates but won. When he returned for a second term, it was unopposed because of their confidence in his recent service. He has served as Secretary for the Integrity Group of the national body from 2013 to date.
In another instance he led a workers’ strike for 12 working days, sleeping in front of the office to protect the interest of their members. Even with millions of naira in bribes offered to change his mind, he refused because it would cost them the entitlements of union members. He stood his ground and in December 2019, the entire staff was paid what they were owed.
Currently, he has been transferred to Yola because he fought for the beneficiaries of promotions to get what they deserved. Numerous petitions later, the Chief Executive was asked to appear before the Code of Conduct Bureau. He decided to transfer Ibrahim and all his 28 protesting colleagues, but they refused to retract their petition. The case is currently being tried in court.
Ibrahim has been in Yola since the 21st of January 2021 but remains resolved to fight for what he believes is right no matter the consequence.
Musa Agono

Musa Agono,
Assistant Superintendent of Corps II (ASCII) of NSCDC, Kogi state command

Musa Agono joined the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps 11 years ago. He started his service as a medical officer in charge of first aid equipment, receiving commendations from both staff and non-staff in the process. From there, he was posted to Ibadi local government during the flood disaster in 2011/2012 to take stock of relief materials and donations from the Federal Government and NGOs. Though some of the officers stationed with him saw this as an opportunity to enrich themselves he refused to assent to their schemes. It was a trying period that led to a clash with one of his fellow officers.
He has utilised his influential position to uncover wrongdoings doing especially in issues of banditry. Upon discovering multiple cases of false reporting, he decided to run all information through his section commander in order to have everything done by the book. He discovered instances of informants reporting innocent Fulani herdsmen to the authorities when they came to the market with their cows. He was offered several bribes to write false reports against others in this manner but he refused.
Musa is yet to have any challenge with his superiors, as they have come to understand his character. As a result, he gets redeployed frequently to head the division in each new assignment. He has drawn inspiration from 2020 Integrity Icon, Mrs. Faith Momoh, for who he ran a voting campaign because he was fully aware of her integrity at the local government level – news of her deeds had reached their office on several occasions.

Ekpo-Ita A. Gladys,
Scientific Officer at the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) in Cross River state

Mrs Gladys A. Ekpo-Ita works at the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) Cross River State Coordinating Office as a Scientific Officer. At RMRDC, part of their mandate is to promote the development and optimal utilization of Nigeria’s local raw materials for industrial growth. Thus, they organize many programs that sensitize local farmers, investors, fabricators, and manufacturers on the best approach to value addition and increasing crop yield, following international best practices and standards. 

Because of Mrs Ekpo-Ita’s outstanding character of honesty, transparency, and resourcefulness, she is always involved in programs of the office. As a program leader, she remains on top of her duties, which involve coordinating the team effectively and delivering the project prudently and in a timely manner. At the peak of the COVID-19 lockdown, she realized that delivering her duties would be difficult, and so she adopted virtual means, thus she still keeping tabs with her work and team. Due to Mrs Ekpo-Ita’s consistency and detailed reporting, her boss always relies on her. 

When Mrs Ekpo-Ita is tasked with the responsibility of handling a project, she tries to be as open and accountable as possible. She makes sure that calls and budgets are done openly in the office. She is detailed in jotting every little detail down so that when writing her report, she doesn’t omit any vital information.

She involves everyone in the goal-setting process – in as much as she works closely with one or two people, she involves everyone in the goal-setting process to avoid misconceptions.

Watch our 5 finalists’ short films below:

Ibrahim Musa Kirfi

Barr. Emem Ette

Ekpo-Ita A. Gladys

Adigwe-Uzor Esther

Musa Agono