By Bridget Ikyado /Angela Atabo
Mr Dasuki Arabi, Director-General, Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR), has urged states and local governments to embrace public service reform to fast track delivery of vital services to the citizens.
Arabi said in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja that only Kaduna, Gombe and Lagos states had fully embraced the reform initiative.
“We are of the opinion and the belief that if they transform their public services the way we have worked at the federal level, we will have less problems in the country.
“If state and local governments also pick up on doing what we are doing at the federal level there will be less commotion, less social problems,” the D-G said.
According to him, states that had implemented the public service reform are doing extremely well in the delivery of dividends of democracy.
“The first point of success is Lagos state, they have transformed 100 per cent, in some cases they have even gone beyond what we have done at the federal level.
“Kaduna state is another one, Gombe state is another, and we are celebrating Kaduna and Gombe because their Bureaus of public service reforms have been working exceptionally,” Arabi added.
Arabi, however, said that some states like Borno had implemented some aspects of the public service reform agenda.
“We have noted that some of them had picked some elements of the reforms at the federal level like Borno which had done quite a lot around public financial management and procurement reforms.
“But, we want all of them to do what we call a whole of government approach to public service reforms,” the D-G said
Arabi disclosed that the bureau had been engaged in Ogun to assist in reforming the state public service for optimum performance.
The D-G said: “We are going to all the states in the Southwest and will use this opportunity to ask the governors to hasten the process so that we complete that quickly.
“In other states of the federation, we have written letters, visited them. if not for COVID-19 and shortage of funds, we would have gone to the governors.
“We are of the opinion and the belief that if they transform their public services the way we have worked at the federal level, we will have less problems in the country.
“We will use this opportunity to call on other state governments to please work with us, respond to our calls, and respond to the directive of the President to create bureaus of public service reform.”
Arabi said that it was very imperative to extend the reform to all the local government areas of the country.
“Once we are able to get it right at the local government level, there will be less number of people trooping into the state capitals and Abuja for work, business or other things.
Arabi said: “So, our focus as we go to the states is to get these two tiers of government reformed 100 per cent .
“What we have seen in the states we have gone to is an attempt by the state governments to pay special attention to the local governments, in spite of all the challenges around infrastructure, roads and connectivity.
“We have seen quite a lot of improvements and it is my hope that if the local governments are doing it right, we will have less problems in this country.”
According to Arabi, ”if a local government with a population of about 400,000 persons will spend its monthly federal allocation directly, the multiplier effect will be felt by almost everybody in the local government.”
Arabi said that the ultimate aim of the reform was to deliver excellent services to the people.
“I think every Nigerian should be worried that some of the communities or the states have some of the most fertile lands in Nigeria, yet you see a lot of their young men coming into Abuja.
“So, we will encourage the state governments through our reforms to provide better amenities and opportunities at the local governments, as well as the states so that there will be less pressure on the Federal Government, ” he added. (NAN)
