FG’s Plan To Sack Workers

In his recent nationwide broadcast marking the first anniversary of his administration in office, President Muhammadu Buhari was reported to have indicated plans by the Federal Government to reduce the number of federal workers across the country.

The president reportedly disclosed that on completion of the exercise, “we will have a leaner and more efficient public service that is fit for the purpose of changing Nigeria”.

According to the president, 43,000 ghost workers have already been weeded out from the federal civil service and this has invariably led to saving a huge sum of N4.2 billion yearly for government.

We commend government for boldly embarking on the long-awaited measure aimed at drastically reducing costs, as well as tremendously eliminating the myriad of avoidable fraudulent duplications in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the federal government. The state and local governments should take a cue from the federal government in this regard.

We observe with dismaythat over the years, past administrations in the country failed to tackle the issue of bloated federal civil service frontally in spite of the inherent danger it posed to the economy of the country. More disturbing is the fact that the immediate past administration shelved the popular Steve Oransanye Report, which extensively and specifically recommended amongst others, that some federal ministries, departments and agencies be merged in order to reduce costs and also eliminate those glaring duplications in such institutions.

This period of dwindling oil revenue and deteriorating economy calls for genuine sacrifices not only from the governed but more especially from those directing the affairs of the country.

In order to avoid the mistakes of the past, those in government should shun all forms of profligacy and desist from flaunting their nauseating ill-gotten wealth in public to avert possible uprising. In essence, leaders and their followers must be seen to be on the same page when it comes to making sacrifices to enable the economy pick up again.

However, we implore government to ensure monies saved from the exercise do not go into private pockets. Also, after eliminating those duplications in the MDAs, government should not for any reason turn round to establish unnecessary committees or institutions, thereby defeating the initial lofty objectives from which the exercise was carried out. It is unfortunate that the exercise whose primary objective is to reduce cost of governance and eliminate duplications in the affected institutions will inevitably lead to loss of jobs. This is especially judging by the fact that under the Buhari administration this past one year, unemployment rate, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), rose from 24.1 percent in May 2015 to 29.2 percent in May 2016. This is in addition to the fact that during the period, a number of workers in banks, telecommunications companies and manufacturing firms were sacked due to the unfavourable operating environment.

The reality on ground is that the current endangered socio-economic situation which was not caused by this government, does not have the capacity to absorb those that would likely lose their jobs.

However, government has the obligation to ensure these workers are paid their entitlements before disengagement to avert the usual conflicts in this regard between government and workers. Some of them can also be assisted to get employment elsewhere. If government is serious about reducing cost of governance, the exercise should be extended to political appointees at various tiers where duplications in appointments are currently having immeasurable drains on the purses of not only the federal government but also the state and local governments, many of which are currently owing workers salaries.

Independent Newspaper.