-By Bassey Udo
The Nigerian government appears set to scrap at least eight federal agencies, commissions, and parastatals out of about 220 recommended for abolition in the report of the Stephen Oronsaye-led Presidential Committee on the Rationalisation and Restructuring of Federal Government Parastatals, Commissions and Agencies, PREMIUM TIMES has learnt.
As part of the rationalisation, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Commission are to be merged into a single entity.
PREMIUM TIMES learnt that a White Paper on the Orosanye-committee report was extensively discussed in at least three meetings of the Executive Council of the Federation, otherwise known as FEC.
As part of the deliberations on the report, a review committee on the draft White Paper, chaired by President Goodluck Jonathan, approved that some agencies be either scrapped completely or merged with those performing similar functions.
PREMIUM TIMES findings reveal eight of those agencies.
The agencies to be scrapped completely include the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE); Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC); Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC); National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC); National Poverty Eradication programme (NAPEP); Utilities Charges Commission (UCC); the National Economic Intelligence Committee (NEIC) and the Public Complaints Commission (PCC).
Affected Agencies
Bureau of Public Enterprises
The BPE was established with the mandate of implementing the Nigerian government policy on privatization and commercialization and preparing public enterprises for privatization and commercialization.
The government has already “directed that a “Sunset Clause” should be introduced to the BPE to conclude its assignment and wound down,” according to the review committee’s conclusion.
This implies that the BPE would wind up once it concludes its assignment of privatization of public enterprises.
Fiscal Responsibility Commission
Another agency that has been recommended to be scrapped is the Fiscal Responsibility Commission, FRC, which was established to help monitor government financial activities and enthrone a regime of prudent, ethical and effective management of public monies and resources by the tiers of government.
Already, the Jonathan-headed review committee has directed the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke, to initiate the necessary actions to give effect to the decision to abolish the FRC.
A third agency that could be scrapped is the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) established in 1977 to help minimize the bureaucratic bottlenecks and increase autonomy in dealing with members of the organised private sector to promote the export of Nigerian goods and commodities.
The fourth agency that may be scrapped is the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC), which was established by Act 99 of 1993 charged with the responsibility of managing all issues pertaining to compensation and renumeration in the the public service.
National Poverty Eradication Programme (NAPEP), which the committee said might be scrapped, was conceived in 2001 by the Federal Government to help address poverty in the country and related issues, while the Utilities Charges Commission (UCC) was established to help evaluate trends in tariff charged to provide the government with information relating to the scheduled utilities and their tariff charges.
The other agencies that might be affected include National Economic Intelligence Committee (NEIC), which was established to serve as a vehicle for effective monitoring of the implementation of government’s national economic policies and programmes for the overall development of the country, while the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) was established to help bridge the gap between the elite and the down-trodden in the society.
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