Taraba gov tasks NULGE on failure of local govt system in Nigeria

Taraba state governor, Mr. Darius Dickson Ishaku, has said that participation of people in political activities at the grass root level can only increase when the local government administration is functional and vibrant.

The governor spoke at the Government House, Jalingo, the state capital when officials of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) led by the national president paid him a courtesy visit.

Ishaku, however, challenged the union to unravel the circumstances responsible for the retrogression and failure of local government system in the Country with a view to repositioning same for high productivity and efficiency.

According to the governor, he is on the same page with the officials of the NULGE especially in their advocacy for good governance at the grass roots hence an effective Local Government Service Commission in the State.

He explained that his administration was committed to the payment of workers’ salaries considering the fact that most civil servants have dependents and without other sources of income.

Ishaku appealed to local government staff who are genuinely employed to reason with his administration, stressing that the third phase of screening the local government staff in the state by security operatives is now yielding huge results.

The Governor pointed out that those previous screening exercises of the staff in the past could not stand the test of time because fictitious names were included on the pay rolls of the local councils which gave rise to either delay or non-payment of some genuine staff.

Ishaku said since his assumption of duties as Governor in Taraba State, salaries of local government staff had skyrocketed astronomically despite transfers, retirements and deaths.
Earlier, NULGE National President, Ibrahim Khaleel, said they were in the state on an advocacy campaign for local government autonomy and to identify with the Governor who, according to him, is a critical stakeholder.

Khaleel observed with dismay the absence of an effective leadership at the Local Government level and attributed the trend to the wide spread of corruption, insecurity, poor health care delivery system among others.

He commended Governor Ishaku for conducting a successful local government election in the state and for his recent victory at the Supreme Court.