A total of 1,050 illegal civil servants have been uncovered and will be retired over the next three weeks, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF), Alhaji Bukar Aji has said.

Speaking in Abuja at one of the events to commemorate the 60th anniversary celebration of the Nigeria Public Service Commission in Abuja, Aji revealed that a screening by Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) unearthed 1,050 civil servants who ordinarily ought to have retired from the service long ago.

“Through the IPPIS, we are able to screen those who are supposed to have retired long time ago and they will leave the service within the next two to three weeks”, he said, adding that the purge would free up space in the service to promote those legitimately in the service who are due for promotion.

Explaining that the office of the HOCSF and the Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC) had been working together in cooperation and synergy, he enthused that the Federal Civil Service is better-positioned in 2014 to improve the service.

FCSC Chairman, Mrs Joan Ayo traced the history of the commission to its creation in April 1954, when it was saddled with the responsibilities of employing, promoting and disciplining of civil servants.

She restated the commitment of the FCSC to the traditional core values of the civil service, saying some of its achievements are meritocracy, integrity, political neutrality, discipline, impartiality, accountability and transparency.

“We are celebrating the past and looking at where we have got it wrong, so we can improve and do it better,” she said.

Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Ayim Pius Ayim, who was represented by Permanent Secretary, General Service of SGF, Mr. Linus Awute, promised the continued support of the Federal Government