National Telescope national telescope newspaper
Olatunde Oluwasola
The human rights lawyer, Femi Falana has described the Steve Oronsaye report recommending the merger of government agencies and commissions as outdated.
According to him, the report can not guarantee reduction in the cost of governance.
He stated this in a statement made available to journalists on Tuesday.
Recalled that the Federal Executive Council (FEC), chaired by President Bola Tinubu had on Monday approved the full implementation of the Steve Oronsaye report.
According to Hadiza Bala Usman, the Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, the move was in accordance to the need for the reduction of the cost of governance and efficiency across the chain of governance value.
It reads “The 800-page report of the Steve Oronsaye Panel recommended the reduction of statutory agencies from 263 to 161, scrapping 38 agencies, merging 52, and reverting 14 to departments in different ministries.
“Since the Goodluck Jonathan administration produced a White Paper on the Steve Oronsaye Report in 2014, the Federal Government has created more ministries, departments and agencies.
“Whereas the Report recommended the reduction of 263 agencies to 151, the number of ministries, departments and agencies has increased to 1316. Even the current administration has increased the number of ministries and created new agencies. To that extent, the Steve Oronsaye Report is completely outdated.
“However, in implementing the Oronsaye Report the Federal Government should ensure that the crisis of insecurity is not compounded through the retrenchment of hundreds of thousands of workers.
“Instead of downsizing the public service the Federal Government should ensure that the two houses of the National Assembly are merged while the number of Ministers, Special Advisers, Senior Special Assistants and Special Assistants is significantly reduced.”
