Autonomy: Labour urges the federal government not to allocate workers' salaries to local governments.

 

The Organized Labour, which includes the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), and the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), has proposed a staff redistribution, placement, and auditing initiative to determine the actual number of local government workers, primary school teachers, and pensioners across all 774 local government areas in Nigeria.

Under the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of local government unions, they have also suggested a one-year freeze on hiring new staff, including teachers, from the date of the Supreme Court ruling on direct payments. This measure aims to promote stability and thoughtful consideration.

These proposals are part of JAC's recommendations for enhancing local government operations amid the direct remittance of federal allocations, following the Supreme Court's recent granting of financial autonomy to local governments.

The Presidents of NUT, Titus Amba; NULGE, Ambali Akeem; and NUP, Godwin Abumisi, outlined seven key recommendations, stating, “To ensure a smooth transition to the direct payment system, JAC recommends a staff redistribution, placement, and auditing exercise to confirm the accurate count of local government workers, primary school teachers, and pensioners.”

They emphasized that “the recruitment of new staff for local governments and schools should be paused for one year from the date of the Supreme Court ruling on direct payments to foster stability and focused development. This will allow local governments to concentrate on developmental projects and effective service delivery.”

Additionally, JAC advocated for the restructuring of supervisory bodies overseeing local government workers. This restructuring would involve expanding the statutory membership to include local government chairpersons, heads of local government-based unions, and other relevant stakeholders to enhance quality control and inclusivity.

For the Local Government Service Commission, JAC proposed including a representative from the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) and a NULGE representative as statutory members. Similarly, the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) should have representatives from both ALGON and NUT, while the Local Government Staff Pension Board should include members from ALGON, NUP, NULGE, and NUT. The Primary Health Care Agency should have representatives from ALGON and local health practitioners.

Due to significant deficits in infrastructure and capacity for service delivery in many local governments, JAC has called for federal government intervention to procure essential machinery and equipment, such as tractors, graders, bulldozers, refuse disposal vans, septic evacuation vans, public address system vans, and materials for vocational skill acquisition centers. Funding for these purchases should be deducted from local government allocations over time.

Finally, the peace and security committee of local governments should be reorganized for effective indexing, registration, kitting, intelligence gathering, policing, and regular bi-monthly meetings, all coordinated and funded by the local government.