FG inaugurates sub-committees on restructuring of MDAs

*Set to monitor implementation of national minimum wage payments

The Federal Government has inaugurated two sub-committees on the implementation of the whitepaper on the restructuring of ministries, departments and agencies to reduce the cost of governance.

Speaking at the ceremony in Abuja on Thursday, Boss Mustapha, secretary to the government of the federation (SGF), said the other committee will review new parastatals, agencies and commissions created after the submission of the report on restructuring.

Mustapha noted that the process will evolve a sustainable governance architecture for effective public service delivery.

The sub-committees are chaired by former heads of service of the federation — Bukar Aji, Amal Pepple and Oladapo Afolabi. Other members of the committees are permanent secretaries of ministries and representatives from the Bureau of Public Service Reforms

The SGF said: “It is heart-warming that some of the recent reforms and strategies being put in place are beginning to show the potential of yielding desired results. Worthy of immediate mention is the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan (FCSSIP) 2021 – 2025 and its associated Revised Public Service Rules (PSR) as well as the introduction of Performance Management System (PMS).

“It was in a bid to address this, amongst others, that the Committee on the Restructuring and Rationalization of Federal Government Parastatals, Commissions and Agencies was constituted 18th August, 2011 and submitted its report on 16th April, 2012.

The report recommended that of the 541 Statutory and Non-Statutory Federal Government Parastatals, Agencies and Commissions, 263 statutory agencies should be reduced to 161, 38 agencies should be abolished, 52 agencies should be merged, and 14 should revert back to Departments in Ministries.

“Subsequently, the White Paper on the Report was issued and published in March, 2014 and was followed by the White Paper implementation Committee inaugurated in May, 2014.

However, for a number of reasons, most of which were anchored on political expediency, the White paper not only rejected a large number of the recommendations, it also merely noted an equally greater number of others. But again even those accepted were not implemented.

“Thus, Nigeria has continued to suffer under a daily increasing weight of a high cost of governance under-pinned by high personnel and overhead costs to the detriment of having adequate resources for development projects.

For a long time now, the country has been struggling to make sure that at least 30% of its annual budget goes into capital projects.

“These two Committees viz: Review the Main Report and White paper on Restructuring and rationalization of Federal Government Parastatals, Agencies and Commissions; and review New Agencies created after the Submission of the above report from 2014 to date; were therefore constituted to provide Government with action plan and roadmap of implementing the recommendations contained therein.”

Mustapha added that the committees will proffer time-based recommendations, not exceeding one year, on restructuring and rationalisation, if deemed appropriate of the new agencies.

In her response, Ms Amal Pepple, a former Head of Service of the federation (HOCSF), who heads one of the committees, thanked the federal government on behalf of other members for the opportunity given to them to serve the nation.

According to her, the challenge given to them to provide solution has been lingering for a long time.

“I want to give glory to God for making today possible because the challenge we have been called upon to try and provide solution for has been lingering for a long time, ” she said.

She, however, pledged to deliver its task within the six weeks duration approved by the federal government.

In another development, the Federal Government has said that it would soon begin monitoring the implementation of the National Minimum Wage Act 2019, from N18,000 to N30,000.

The Chairman/CEO of National Salaries, Incomes and wages Commission, Mr Ekpo Nta, at a news conference in Abuja on Thursday, said that it would be an interagency collaboration meant to gather evidence of compliance and difficulties faced by stakeholders, to be able to advise all employers, including governments at all levels.

Nta said it would also allow early planning of the next national minimum wage act and for all stakeholders to know the difficulties involved for better planning.

“For those who have complied fully will be put on honors list and sanction those who have not and have no good reason.”

Nta said that the commission was collating real time data in collaboration with the National Bureau of Statistic (NBS), “so that we can render advice to government at the federal, state, and local government levels and private sectors in the formulation of remuneration policies.”

He said that the commission has carried out remuneration survey in the private health sector, private tertiary education institutions and selected universities in collaboration with the National University Commission in phase one.

Nta said that phase two would cover the private tertiary polytechnics and colleges of education.

“The reason was to compare how much they are paid, allowances, and the services they render, among others in the private health and education sector that has ensured industrial peace.”

He said that the commission collaborated with the federal ministry of health and issued a circular in October for the health sector requesting for the updated statistics of staff in the federal hospital, medical centres, clinics in ministries, department and agencies in the first phase.

Nta said that the second phase would cover the private health sector.

“This will greatly assist the commission in its manning levels and computation of remuneration cost implications and all ministries, departments and agencies are enjoined to cooperate with the commission to ensure success of these and other exercises as they come up.”

He said that the commission also was not limited to only remuneration issues, the commission carries out productivity improvement schemes.

The Chairman commended journalists for their constant support in their reportage and urged them to maintain the good job.