Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, says the implementation of the Oronsaye report is a welcome development albeit long overdue.
BACKGROUND
In 2011, former President Goodluck Jonathan constituted the
Stephen Oronsaye-led panel to identify inadequacies in the country’s civil
service.
In 2012, the committee submitted an 800-page report and
recommended the abolishment and merging of 102 government agencies and
parastatals.
The committee on the white paper submitted its report in
2014.
Since the submission of the report, the recommendations have
not been implemented.
On Monday, President Bola Tinubu directed the full
implementation of the Oronsaye report.
The report revealed that there are 541 statutory and
non-statutory federal government parastatals, commissions and agencies.
Speaking with reporters at the end of the federal executive
council (FEC) on Monday, Mohammed Idris, minister of information, said Tinubu
has approved some reforms based on the Oronsaye report.
Idris said numerous agencies would be eliminated, while
others would be combined or restructured to cut governance costs.
Reacting to the development in a post on his X page on
Wednesday, Obi said he has received numerous messages from people wanting to
know if he would have implemented the Oronsaye report had he won the election.
The former Anambra governor said his answer is yes, adding
that the implementation of the report was part of his campaign manifesto.
He said being in the opposition does not warrant blind and
thoughtless criticisms, noting that whenever the government makes the right
decisions, related or even better ideas on how to move the nation forward
should be proposed.
“Although the implementation of the report is long overdue,
its implementation is a welcome development so long as the decision is informed
by these principles,” Obi said.
“Beyond implementing the Oronsaye Report, the government
should go further and cut the cost of governance across board.
“Having found it
imperative to implement the Report, the government should now do away with the
bogus and needless wastages of our scarce resources on frivolous issues, and
deploy such funds to the critical areas of Education, Health, and pulling
people out of poverty.”
‘WE MUST NOT RUSH IT’
Obi added that implementation of the report should not be
rushed because those who will directly be affected are mostly civil servants.
He urged other political leaders to back the implementation
of the report.
“We must not rush to
implement the Oronsaye Report just because those that will be directly affected
are mostly civil servants,” Obi said.
“A very deep understanding of the workings of the Federal
bureaucracy will be required to effectively implement the Report.
“We the political
leaders, should be ready to back up such implementation with our sacrifices
from comfort and selfishness, for the overall development of the nation.
“In implementing this Report, conscious effort must be made
to cushion the effects of such a major overhaul on the workers, to avoid
driving more people into hardship, in these very challenging times.
“Also Nigerians are yet to be informed about the extant
White Paper pertinent to the report’s implementation. Moreover, you cannot ask
those who are likely to be affected by the downsizing to manage the process.
“Government must also show clearly the amount of resources
to be saved in the implied shrinking of government. It should also indicate
clearly where and how the saved resources are to be redeployed.
“More importantly, the implementation needs to be
accompanied by a template to avoid a future bloating of government.
“By doing the right things and implementing the right
policies, we will build the New Nigeria of our dreams.”
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