Don kicks against implementation of Oronsaye report

By Agency Report

Prof Jonah Onuoha, former Head of Department Political Science, University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) says the present economic hardship in the country is not the best time to implement the Steve Oronsaye Panel report of 2012 that will make many civil service lose their jobs.

Onuoha who is the Director, Centre for American Studies in UNN said this in Nsukka over the weekend while reacting on recent approval by  Federal Executive Council (FEC) for full implementation of Oronsaye report.

He alleged that it was because of high rate of unemployments that was responsible for hardship and insecurity in the country.

The Political Scientist said that it would not be proper for government to render more Nigerians jobless in the name of implementing the report in order to cut cost of governance at this critical time.

"This is not the best time to implement this report because more Nigerians will lose their jobs and hardship will increase.

"Unless government will assure Nigerians that not even one civil servant will lose his or her job while implementing the report.

"What should preoccupy the mind of governments now should be how to create more employment opportunities as well as solve the security challenges to  reduce hardship in the country,"he said.

He urged leadership of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to monitor the implementation of the report closely to ensure that no civil servant was retrenched.

The don however said that, if government actually wanted to cut cost it should slash the jumbo salaries and allowances paid to national assembly members and government political appointees.

"If government reduces jumbo salaries and allowances paid to national assembly members and political appointees as well as stop frivolous spendings it will have enough funds to carry out any developmental project no matter how big it's.

"I don't think peanuts paid to civil servants monthly as salaries are what is looting government treasury.

"Government is talking about  cutting cost but allowed N160m to purchase official vehicle for each of national  assembly members.

"If you add 109 Senators in Senate and 360 House of representative members, it will give you 469 lawmakers.

"Then multiply N160m by 469 you will be speechless and marvelled the huge amount of money used only to buy official vehicles for them ,"he said.

Onuoha argued that hence government said reason for the scraping, merger and subsume in Oronsaye report was because of duplication of functions in some government minsteries and agencies the same thing should be applied in national assembly.

He requested that House of Representative should also be  merged with Senate as both chambers imost times performed same functions.

"If this merger is not possible now we should put the necessary frame work in place before 2027  general elections that will make it possible to practice unicameral legislature.

"Unicameral legislature is better as it will do away with the present  bicameral legislature that requires huge amount of money to maintain," he said.