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By Stella Odueme
The Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has dismissed allegations concerning its Electronic Compliance and Safety Application (ECSA), insisting that the platform belongs entirely to the Fund and that employers' data remain safe and secure.
The Fund, in a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday, in response to a report published by Sahara Reporters on October 11, described the report's claims as inaccurate and misleading, noting that they relied largely on anonymous sources.
The statement, signed by the Head of the Corporate Affairs Department, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund, said ECSA was conceived, developed and deployed internally by the Fund and remained its intellectual property.
It rejected allegations that the platform was copied or rebranded from the intellectual property of P2E Technologies Limited, explaining that ECSA was developed independently of the E-NSITF Project awarded to the company on April 25, 2022.
According to the Fund, the failure of the E-NSITF Project to deliver a functional electronic certification system prompted it to upgrade an existing in-house data harmonisation tool into ECSA.
Addressing concerns over the control of the platform and employers' information, NSITF said all data captured on ECSA reside on its own database infrastructure, with administrative and privileged access restricted to designated officers.
Management assured employers, employees and the general public that no employer data had been lost, copied, transferred or exposed.
It added that the Fund continued to handle employers' information in accordance with the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023.
On reports that the platform had been shut down following the alleged departure of an officer, NSITF maintained that certification services remained operational and had not been disrupted.
The Fund explained that the directive to staff to recapture company records from April 2026 was a planned business-continuity and data-validation measure designed to ensure uninterrupted issuance of compliance certificates while the handover process was being completed.
It stressed that employers could continue to obtain their certificates through the appropriate channels, branch offices and portal, assuring that no eligible employer had been or would be denied certification.
The statement also dismissed claims that an officer sought voluntary exit to return as a consultant responsible for managing ECSA.
According to the Fund, exit applications are handled in line with public service rules, adding that no arrangement had been or would be made to place any NSITF digital platform under the control of an external individual.
Management further disclosed that it had strengthened safeguards governing the ownership, source-code custody, system access and exit arrangements for ECSA and other digital platforms operated by the Fund.
The measures, it said, were formalised under the leadership of the Managing Director and Chief Executive, Mr Oluwaseun Mayomi Faleye, to ensure that no digital platform depended on a single individual.
NSITF also reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, accountability and the protection of employers' and workers' interests.
The Fund urged media organisations to verify information through its official channels before publication, adding that it remained open to journalists seeking clarification on issues concerning its operations.