The leadership of the National Assembly, said yesterday the escalating public service wage bills, overhead costs of appointed public officials, as well as salaries and allowances of elected officials were contributing to the rising cost of governance.
The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, spoke at a one-day dialogue on the cost of governance in Nigeria, organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies, NILDS, in Abuja.
Akpabio, represented by the senator representing Akwa Ibom North, Jarigbe Jarigbe, said there was a need for more transparency, accountability, and a reduction in the cost of governance in the country.
He said: "Let us hold ourselves accountable and take responsibility for the betterment of our nation. We have to ensure that our government operates efficiently and effectively, serving the needs of the people and fostering sustainable development.
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"We must invest in our human capital, empowering our public officials with the necessary skills and knowledge to drive progress. We must foster a culture of innovation and creativity, where new ideas can flourish and transform our nation."
On his part, Abbas said "Nigeria has long grappled with budget deficits, further emphasising the necessity to streamline government operational costs and foster budgetary stability."
"This requires a concerted effort to eliminate wasteful, inefficient and unnecessary expenses from our budgetary allocations."
...As CSO urges govt to provide adequate security for pilgrims
Meanwhile, as the airlift of Nigerian pilgrims to Saudi Arabia begins tomorrow, Independent Hajj Reporters, IHR, a faith-based Civil Society Organization, CSO, that monitors and reports Hajj and Umrah activities has called on the Federal and state governments to make adequate security arrangements for pilgrims at embarkation points across the country.
IHR said Inna statement by its national coordinator Ibrahim Mohammed that over 65, 000 intending pilgrims from Nigeria will be leaving their homes to various Hajj camps for screening and onward transportation to about 15 airports within the next 30 days. Such mass movement of people from one point to another creates serious security challenges that need a comprehensive and coordinated strategy by the various security agencies in the country.
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While we appreciate the efforts made by security agencies in previous operations, we call on the federal government to order and activate a high-level security surveillance system to monitor and protect the movement of pilgrims throughout the outbound and inbound airlift operations.
We also urge State Muslim pilgrims' welfare boards to advise intending pilgrims against coming to hajj camps with large escorts usually made up of family members as such increases the likelihood of security breaches, especially airlift operations demand that pilgrims can be invited to hajj camps at any time of the day or night.
State governments should complement the federal security architecture by mobilizing local vigilantes and other volunteers to form a hajj security team and provide them with internal communication equipment with state hajj officials, airliners and other airlift stakeholders
