Some members of top, middle and junior staff members of the National Assembly, who simply style themselves “Sakeholders”, have called on presiding officers in the National Assembly to allow the National Assembly Service Commission, NASC, to freely operate and deliver on its mandates.
Presiding officers include Senate President, Deputy Senate President in the upper legislative chamber and Speaker and Deputy Speaker in the lower legislative chamber.
THE CONCLAVE reports that according to the Act establishing NASC, presiding officers are only to be consulted when decisions that affect them administratively are to be taken.
They are not to hijack or take over the daily running of the commission as circumscibed by the Establishment Act.
The call by the “stakeholders” came amid ongoing moves by the NASC to appoint officers to fill the vacancies created by the retirement of some top management staff members.
The “stakeholders” bemoaned the continuous interference of the presiding officers in the operations of the commission.
They cited instances of how a former Senate president, the late Chuba Okadigbo had insisted on working with Mr Ozubele as clerk of Senate from November 1999 to August 2000.
Okadigbo and Ozubele were from the same ethnic group.
The position of Okadigbo had frustrated and denied the rightful occupant of the office of Clerk of Senate from stepping in.
Similarly, Abubakar Salisu Maikasuwa was appointed and posted to the House of Representatives as Clerk but was rejected by the then Speaker Dimeji Bankole who wanted the status quo to be maintained.
Maikasuwa was thereafter appointed as Clerk of the Senate but his posting did not receive the blessing of the then Senate President, David Mark, who also wanted the then Clerk of Senate, Ben Efeturi, to remain.
THE CONCLAVE reports the “stakeholders” to have said that the same scenario is about repeating itself in the Senate where Isabella Ugochi Iloba, the most qualified to succeed the recently retired Clerk of Senate, Dauda Ibrahim el-Ladan, from emerging indications, may not be accepted let alone confirmed by the NASC on the request of the Senate President, Senator Ahmad Lawan, as Clerk of Senate.
It was also learnt that the Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, is also not disposed to working with any Clerk from the northern part of the country.
The “stakeholders” expressed dismay at the apparent display of disdain for a particular person based on gender and ethnicity in the 21st century.
They said that whoever was appointed by the National Assembly Service Commission, NASC, should be respected and related with strictly in accordance with the provisions of their stipulated functions.
They explained that the officers, in question, who were being discriminated against, didn’t appoint themselves neither did they post themselves to those offices and positions.
One of them said: “The Commission, which is their employer, deemed it necessary and proper, based on merit, seniority, career progression and competence to post them to so occupy the office(s).
“Also, the public service rules are well spelt out and provisions made to address any act of disobedience or insubordination, should an officer run foul of any responsibility.
“But a situation where, presiding officers work against these principles, the functions of the commission may have been undermined, thus putting the commission in bad light in the eyes of its employees and the public.”
The “stakeholders” said they were not happy with the presiding officers for not showing gratitude to the institution that brought them to such an enviable political height and recognition.
They stated that having sojourned in the National Assembly from 1999 to date as a member then, and now as a senator, Majority Leader and now as President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan should be seen as a leading defender of the institution of the National Assembly, and a preserver of its sanctity.
They also noted that it was the Senate President who nominated Engineer Kadi Amshi as Chairman of NASC, saying whereas that spoke volumes, they were at pains to believe that he did that so he could teleguide the Commission.
They said he (Senate President) should allow the chairman and his commissioners to do their legitimate duties without interference.
According to them, “the same goes for Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila, who came into the National Assembly as a member in 2003, thus making him equally one of the oldest in the Assembly and has enjoyed similar progression and prominence politically as his presiding counterpart in the senate.
“He was a Minority Leader and thereafter Majority leader, and now Speaker. It is therefore, expected that he gives his utmost support for the smooth running of both the National Assembly and the Commission.”
The “stakeholders” appealed to the presiding officers to be dispassionate and steer clear of the commission in its daily operations.
They pointed out that as of today, the National Assembly was at its lowest ebb as far as its image was concerned.
The “stakeholders”, therefore, pleaded with them to stop politicizing the public service (NASC), as any attempt to infiltrate it would amount to having a poorly motivated service, where merit, seniority, career progression and competence would be supplanted by mediocrity,and history/posterity will judge them rightly or wrongly.
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