Stakeholders cautions FG against unwarranted duplication of Agencies

A civil society organisation, Transparency Advocacy International, called on President Muhammadu Buhari to jettison the planned establishment of Peace Corps of Nigeria as being proposed by the National Assembly.

Executive Secretary of the group,   Dr. Sam Obinna Nnodim urged the federal government to avert what he described as ‘unnecessary duplication of agency’, stating that the prevailing situation in the country calls  for a thorough reappraisal of  functional economic policies in a period of depression.

Addressing journalists, on Monday, in Abuja, Nnodim said that one of the conspicuous draw back in effective and efficient service delivery in public institutions in the country is duplication or overlapping of functions of some ministries and agencies.

He stated that the current economic downturn that the nation is experiencing makes the implementation of the Oronsaye report very urgent.

“It is in this regard that the ongoing legislative process intended to create a new paramilitary agency, the Peace Corps of Nigeria is, in our view, a contravention of President Buhari’s policy thrust and what the Oronsaye report set out to achieve,” he stated.

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) are equipped to do the job for which the corps is to be created,” he said.

The leader of the group further noted that the cost of governance in Nigeria has been ranked among the highest in the world, adding that the bloated bureaucracies created by the various arms of government, as if in competition, have unwittingly underdeveloped the country for many years.

”This becomes even more pertinent as we recall that the 2016 fiscal budget of N6.08 trillion is premised on an oil benchmark of $38 per barrel, N1.84 trillion borrowing, revenue projection of N3.86 trillion, deficit of N2.22 trillion and a Debt-to-Gross Domestic Product ratio of  216 per cent.

‘’The reality on ground in the nation calls for a fiscal philosophy that would vigorously tackle corruption, waste, inefficiency, poor governance and inequitable distribution of wealth.

‘’Cutting down the cost of governance and unnecessary wastage should be the focus if the federal government is very serious about bringing down the cost,” he added.