Autonomy: Labour begs FG not to give workers’ salary to LGs

In order to determine the true numbers of local government employees, primary school teachers, and pensioners in each of the 774 local government areas across the country, the organized labor, which is made up of 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 exercise.

In order to maintain stability and consideration, the Joint Action Committee, or JAC, of local government-based unions also suggested a one-year moratorium on hiring new employees, including teachers, for a year following the date of the Supreme Court's decision regarding direct payment.

These are some of the recommendations made by JAC to ensure that local governments operate effectively during the direct transmission of federal funds in the wake of the Supreme Court's recent decision to empower local governments financial autonomy.

"For a hitch-free take-off of the direct payment system, JAC recommends that there should be staff redistribution, placement, and auditing exercise to ascertain the actual numbers of Local Government workers, primary school teachers, and pensioners," stated President Titus Amba of NUT, President-General of NULGE, and President of NUP, Godwin Abumisi, in a seven-point recommendation.

"Hiring new employees for Local Government and education should be put on hold for a year following the Supreme Court's ruling on direct payment to ensure stability and consideration. This will enable Local Government to focus on developmental projects and real service delivery”.

Among other recommendation, the JAC equally advocated the “restructuring of supervisory institutions controlling and supervising Local Government workers. These agencies are to be restructured by way of expanding their statutory members to include chairmen of local government; heads of local government based unions and other relevant stakeholders for quality control and inclusivity.”

For Local Government Service Commission, JAC proposed for statutory membership to include: representative of Association of Local Government of Nigeria, ALGON, and representative of NULGE, while for State Universal Basic Education Board, SUBEB, statutory membership should include: Representative of ALGON and representative of NUT.
Similarly, representatives of ALGON, NUP, NULGE, and NUT should be included in the Local Government Staff Pension Board's statutory membership, and representatives of ALGON and local government health practitioners should be included in the Primary Health Care Agency's statutory membership.

The recommendations state as follows: "The Federal Government should intervene in the procurement of machines and equipment such as tractors, graders, bulldozers, refuse disposal vans (tipper lorries), septic evacuation vans, public address system vans, and supply of materials and equipment for the vocational skill acquisition centers due to the huge deficit in infrastructural development and lack of capacity for service delivery in many local governments nationwide." The money allotted by the local government should be taken out gradually in installments to cover the cost of purchasing these materials.

"For the aim of indexing, registration, kitting and intelligence collection, policing, and regular bi-monthly meetings coordinated and supported by the local government, the peace and security committee of the local government should be reorganized.

The following payments should be made first line of duty and based at the appropriate agencies in order to support worker welfare, industrial harmony, training and capacity building, and the sustainability of industrial stability in the Local Government system.

"The Local Government Service Commission shall be the primary repository for the gross salary of employees of local government. The Local Government Service Commission should be the recipient of two percent of the overall LG allotment for administering grants and local government training.

Primary school teachers' gross pay need to be within SUBES's jurisdiction. SUBEB should hold 1.5 percent of the total LGA allotted for SUBEB running grants.
"The local government staff Pension Board should be the domicile for the deduction of 25 percent of the gross salary of teachers and other local government employees from LG allocation for the purpose of paying pensions and gratuities." The traditional council's five percent award should be withheld and deposited into traditional council funds.

Furthermore, JAC suggested "improving the Federal Ministry of Special Assignments and Intergovernmental Affairs as a Supervising Ministry." This is for the creation, coordination, execution, and oversight of policies. Additionally, to improve productivity and policy assurance at the local government level, reforms in the local government should be coordinated through a quarterly summit to evaluate government economic policy on the Local Government Scheme of Service every five years.