The Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs in Niger State Northcentral Nigeria, Mu’azu Hamidu Jantabo has affirmed his commitment to resolving the concerns faced by various agencies within the Ministry. He particularly emphasized his determination to prioritize the enhancement of staff welfare.
The Commissioner conveyed this commitment during a familiarization tour of the Niger State Environmental Protection Agency, Labour House, the Local Government Auditor General’s office, SUBEB, and the Local Government Service Commission. The purpose of this visit was to strengthen the relationship between these agencies and the Ministry.
Jantabo reiterated that the identified issues would be promptly addressed. He cautioned against the practice of allocating funds to agencies without achieving meaningful results, stating that the Ministry would ensure continuous monitoring of the activities of each agency under his supervision.
According to him, “The essence of the visit is to identify agencies or institutions that are strategic to our operations to further cement the already existing relationships. I’ve been council chairman for four years and I know areas where to experience conflicts, so we want to avoid that this time around,“ he stated.
Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Abubakar Aliyu also assured the management of the agencies and institutions visited that the ministry will not relent until all the identified issues are nip in the bud, while appreciating them for maintaining cordial working relationships over the years.
Also, the Permanent Secretary, Niger State Local Government Service Commission, Tanimu Yakubu who seeks a reboot and symbiotic relationship for optimum results, informed the new commissioner of the enormous challenges facing the commission as a burden hence the need for his support to resolve those problems.
The Chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress Comrade Idris Lafene identified some of the challenges of the Labour Union including consequential adjustment of Minimum wage, non-payment of Salary arrears and ineffective promotion for civil servants.
The Director of Statutory and Special Operations, Lawal Adamu, who received the Commissioner on behalf of the Local Government Auditor General, Ibrahim Ahmed applauded the commissioner for the visit while expressing hopes that the appointment of the Commissioner is the beginning of a new dawn to the agencies owing to his knowledge of some their challenges.
The Acting General Manager of NISEPA, Halima Ndayako, appealed to the Ministry to assist in the purchase of equipment as some of the existing ones in the agency are outdated.
The acting executive chairman of Niger State Universal Education Board (SUBEB), Fatima Jella Suleiman appreciated the commissioner whom he described as a homecoming and assured of the board’s full support in achieving the desired objectives of the present government in the state.
