The Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria
on Tuesday in Abuja described as “satanic verses”, and “ignoble assignment
reeking of self-serving agenda”, the suggestion by a two-time Presidential
Spokesperson, Dr. Doyin Okupe, that governors should sack thousands of their
workers.
According to the union, his demand that the various
governments in the country should be sacking 10 per cent of their workforce
every year was “a recipe for increased insecurity in the country.”
The organisation regretted that it was this type of
negative advice by Okupe and other failed politicians that led to the collapse
of the Peoples Democratic Party and its woeful performance during the 2015
presidential election.
The ASCSN in a statement by its President, Bobboi
Kaigama, and Secretary-General, Bashir Lawal, warned the state governments to
be wary of the likes of Okupe, “who, consigned to the dustbin of history
because of economic hardship they foisted on Nigerian people as members of the
kitchen cabinet of the discredited PDP Federal Government, were now seeking
relevance in the polity, trying to warm their ways to the hearts of state
governors.”
The ASCSN said, “Okupe therefore, wants a situation
where the entire country will be thrown into turmoil because if all the state
governments sack 20 per cent to 30 per cent of their workforce, anarchy will
reign supreme and when that happens, Okupe and his league of failed
professionals masquerading as politicians will begin to jubilate that the
Federal Government of All Progressives Congress (APC) has failed.
“It is the over-bloated emoluments of political office
holders which in the past included Okupe and his fellow travellers who
constitutes less than 1 per cent of the population that has brought the economy
to ruins.”
The ASCSN accordingly advised Okupe to start the
campaign to reduce the big salaries and allowances of Nigerian political office
holders which consumed about 70 per cent of the annual budget (25 per cent for
legislative arm and 40 per cent for the executive arm), leaving virtually
nothing for capital projects and which is the reason why the meagre salaries of
civil servants cannot be paid as and when due.
“It is common knowledge that Nigerian political
office holders are the highest paid in the world, most of whom receive more
than the President of the United States of America. This is the area Okupe
should beam his searchlight on, if he is interested in curbing waste apart from
joining the current anti-corruption war designed to plug all leakages in the
administration of public finances.
“Besides, given his antecedent, the public is not
deceived by Okupe’s vituperations as self-appointed consultant of state
governments because this ignoble assignment reeks of self-serving agenda.”
The ASCSN regretted that Okupe sees nothing wrong
with the security votes of governors which on the average is N1 billion
monthly, adding that his kite-flying project was dead on arrival.
The union also faulted Okupe’s advice that the
Federal Government should deploy pension funds for projects, warning that the
funds were savings meant to settle the legitimate benefits of workers on
retirement.
“Any attempt to tamper with workers pension funds
will be fiercely resisted by the trade unions”, the ASCSN added.
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