FRED ITUA examines the recent report of the Presidential Committee on the Rationalization and Restructuring of Federal Government Parastatals, Commissions and Agencies which recommended the pruning of statutory agencies from 263 to 161 to reduce governance cost and the discordant responses it has generated from stakeholders.
The much anticipated report of the Presidential Committee on the Rationalisation and Restructuring of Federal Government Parastatals, Commissions and Agencies finally submitted its 800-page report to President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday with mind-boggling recommendations that 102 statutory agencies should be scrapped from the current 263 to reduce them to 161 as part of ongoing measures to cut cost of governance.
The committee headed by the former Head of Service Mr. Stephen Oronsaye, while speaking after presenting the report, said the committee noted duplications and overlaps in the mandates of most of the parastatals and agencies. “Successive administrations established parastatals without regard to existing laws and, in some cases, out rightly replicating extant laws,” he stated.
Some of the statutory agencies recommended for total scrapping or merger to address overlaps include the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, Nigerian Communication Satellite, NigComSat, Nomadic Education Commission, NEC, and the National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and Non-Formal Education, NCMLA.
While recalling the cost implication of the duplication of some of these statutory agencies, Oronsaye said “the average cost of governance in Nigeria is believed to rank among the highest in the world.
For example, there are 541 government parastatals, commissions and agencies (statutory and non-statutory). Going by the recommendations of the committee, the figure of statutory agencies is being proposed for reduction to 161 from the current figure of 263.
“The committee believes that if the cost of governance must be brought down, then both the Legislature and Judiciary must make spirited efforts at reducing their running costs as well as restructuring and rationalising the agencies under them since the three arms make up the government.
“Consequently, the committee has proposed four ways, among others, of immediately reducing the cost of governance:(i) Reduction in the number and size of the governing boards of parastatals; (ii) Linking the budgetary system to deliverables and output; (iii) Implementation or vacation of some decisions taken on past reports; and (iv) Removal of all professional bodies/Councils from the National Budget.”
Oronsaye further noted that the functions of both EFCC and ICPC sometimes overlap and primarily falls under the purview of the Nigeria Police Force.
“The committee observed that even though the two commissions were established separately to address corruption, which the police appeared to have failed to do, successive administrations have ironically continued to appoint the Chairman of the EFCC from the Police Force, while the methodology adopted by the ICPC in conducting investigations as well as the training of its personnel in investigation procedure are carried out by the Police.
“One wonders if it was really expedient to dismember the Nigeria Police rather than allow it to evolve as a vibrant and effective agency. Mr. President, the point that must be reiterated is the fact that an inefficient and ineffective institution should not be a basis for the creation of new ones.
The officers and men of the Nigeria Police Force have been reputed for performing exceptionally and winning laurels while on international peace-keeping and other missions.
“This implies that the problems of our police are not incurable. It is thus obvious that reaction to symptoms rather than the diagnosis of the problem has contributed significantly to the proliferation of parastatals and agencies.” While stating his reasons for the scrapping of FRSC, Oronsaye noted that the commission should not be in existence in its present form.
Commenting on NigComSat, he noted that the satellite system which was established as the commercial arm of the Nigerian Space Research Development Agency, NASRDA has now expanded its scope and is in rivalry with its parent body.
While making a case for the merger of the country’s broadcasting agencies, he cited instances from other countries in the world that have established a single coordinating point for all their mass media communication. He therefore recommends that NTA, FRCN and VON be merged in tandem with what is obtainable in other nations of the world.
Reactions
Though many Nigerians have lauded the recommendations of this report, some stakeholders have however picked holes in some of the clauses of the report. The pioneer director-general of the Debt Management Office, DMO and former permanent secretary in the Federal Ministry of Finance, Mr. Akin Arikawe has faulted some clauses of the recommendations.
Speaking with LEADERSHIP WEEKEND, he opined that rather than scrap or merge EFCC, ICPC and the FRSC, the agencies should be further strengthened to meet with the growing demands of the time. “Why would someone suggest that the EFCC and ICPC be scrapped, in the face of the spiraling corruption threatening the existence of this nation?” Arikawe queried. “What I expected from the committee is to recommend to the government ways to increase funding to these two agencies and strengthen their operational capacity. Even the merger been recommended by the committee is wrong because both agencies have separate responsibilities.
“The EFCC deals with financial and economic crimes while ICPC tackles other forms of corruption in the system. The Police Force is too corrupt to handle issues relating to corruption,” he added.
On FRSC, Arikawe suggested that the agency shouldn’t be scrapped. He however advised that the agency should focus its energy more on highway patrols and less on intra-city routes if the primary aim for setting up the agency must be realized.
Also reacting to the recommendations of the report, Prof. Itse Sagay and Mr Emeka Ngige, both senior advocates of Nigeria said the Oronsaye report was shocking. “I’m shocked, terribly shocked at such recommendations,” Sagay noted. “The establishment of the two institutions was as a result of the inability of the police to perform the duty of curbing corruption in the first instance.
“We are still overwhelmed by the problem caused by corruption in the country today. To scrap the EFCC and ICPC therefore is to encourage corruption in the country. I don’t know why such a recommendation was made by the committee, but I believe it should be discarded completely, and with ignominy. It is absolutely anti-Nigeria and unacceptable.”
On his part, Ngige noted that if the recommendations of the committee are implemented, it will only heighten insecurity in the country. “The Oronsaye report if implemented would not only heighten insecurity but worsen the level of corruption in the country.
What the country needs at the moment is to strengthen enabling laws to position the two agencies for maximum performance,” he said.
As expected, the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, worried that if the recommendations of the report are implemented, it could have adverse effect on Nigerian workers and called on the government to address the social and labour issues that might ensue from the report of the Oronsaye-led committee.
Speaking through its acting president, Mr. Joe Ajaero, the congress said its comments had become imperative because of the recommendations in the report “raised serious labour and social issues”.
Speaking further, Ajaero said, “The recommendations, which include the reduction of 263 statutory commissions to 161 and the scrapping of 38 agencies, may lead to massive loss of jobs which will have disastrous consequences for the country.
It is necessary to first clarify that the NLC believes that the cost of governance needs to be reduced although we think this has to do mainly with government expenditure on political appointees and hangers on.
Many observers are optimistic that the cost of running government will drastically reduce if some of these recommendations are implemented.
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