Kaduna State Governor, Nasiru El-Rufai has disclosed that he has provided a comprehensive briefing to President Muhammadu Buhari on the rightsizing policy of the Kaduna State government and the steps taken so far to implement it.
According to him, his administration will seek accountability for the NLC’s actions in the state by setting up a Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the events of May 2021, explaining that it is hiring over 10,000 staff because rightsizing obliges the government to continuously recruit teachers, doctors, nurses and other qualified staff to provide vital services.
In a statement issued by the Special Adviser on Media and Communication, Mr Muyiwa Adekeye, the Governor assured President Buhari that government is determined not to allow a repeat of the pains, economic losses and the restraints of freedom that the NLC inflicted on the people of the state.
“Alluding to the NLC’s renewed threat of strike action, the statement said that the NLC has demonstrated that it does not even believe in equality among its own members by describing the transfer of a state employee to a place where other civil servants are serving as victimisation”.
The Governor recalled that, its representatives made it clear at the 20th May 2021 conciliation meeting that whatever they signed required the approval of the Kaduna State Executive Council.
“Government has since informed the Federal Minister of Labour that the State Executive Council is unable to approve the MoU”.
“It is trite that an MoU is not a legally-binding document. The content of the MoU shows that there is no congruence between the progressive aspirations of the Kaduna State government and the misguided sense of entitlement of the NLC which does not even believe in equality amongst its own members”, he said.
He added that union membership or accession to a leadership position in a union does not grant immunity to an employee for his/her actions and conduct or exempt them from compliance with the laws that govern everyone else.
“There are procedures that need to be followed to make a strike action legal, and the kind of conduct permissible during legitimate strike action is also bound by law. Lawful strike action still subjects strikers to the no-work, no-pay rule. How then can unlawful strike action be expected to be without consequences as spelt out in the relevant laws and regulations”.
The Special Adviser reiterated that government is yet to disengage any state civil servant but has dispensed with the services of 99 political appointees so far. Only the 23 local government councils and the agencies associated with the local government system such as SUBEB and the Primary Health Care Board have released staff.
“Rightsizing is about getting the optimal number of persons with the requisite skills to staff the public service, saying, government is engaged in continuous recruitment of teachers, doctors, nurses and other health workers to provide vital services for citizens. “More than 10,000 such workers, including 7,600 secondary school teachers are being injected into the public service”.
The Governor appealed for the continued patience and understanding of all citizens as steps are being taken for the fair conclusion of the exercise.
Nnenna.O
