The Chief of Staff to the President, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, has said the proposed 2025 budget for State House agencies will be based on a thorough needs assessment to ensure that funds allocated to agencies were based on actual requirements.
Gbajabiamila spoke to the media on Wednesday in Abuja, following a one-day fact-finding tour of some government agencies under the supervision of State House.
”In any country in the world, resources are limited. For us it is about prioritising. Where are we so far? What have the agencies done? How have they measured up to their mandates and how important are their mandates in terms of the vision of this administration and the Renewed Hope Agenda?
”A lot of agencies are not properly funded. Do we merge some of these agencies, do we scrap some? I’m not talking about the State House agencies.
”In 2025 we are not going to budget in a vacuum. We will budget based on needs assessment,” he said.
Earlier, in separate interactions with Heads and staff of the agencies, the Chief of Staff pledged that the Presidency would ensure better welfare and working conditions of staff within the agencies under the supervision of the State House.
He urged the staff of the agencies to embrace innovation, excellence, and professionalism, while supporting their Chief Executives to succeed.
Accompanied by the Deputy Chief of Staff, Senator Ibrahim Hadeija, the Permanent Secretary, State House, Engr. Olufunso Adebiyi, and the Senior Special Assistant to the President, Administration and Operations (Office of the Chief of Staff), Mrs Oyinade Nathan-Marsh, Gbajabiamila also emphasised the importance of transparency in the procurement process, which is critical to upholding the administration’s commitment to good governance and accountability.
The Chief of Staff visited the Nigeria Agriculture and Land Development Agency (NALDA), Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission (NAEC), and the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI).
During the tour, Gbajabiamila underscored the importance of these agencies in driving the government’s Renewed Hope Agenda in the economic and development sectors, and reiterated the administration’s resolve to strengthen these institutions.
He noted that the visit, the first of its kind under this administration, was a follow-up to the recent one-day retreat for the Heads of State House Agencies.
The retreat was convened to reinforce the administration’s commitment to strengthening institutions, ensuring they are well-equipped to fulfill their mandates and reducing the cost of governance.
Assuring the agencies that their concerns on staff renumeration, inadequate office accommodation and other legitimate challenges would be addressed, Gbajabiamila said measures would be put in place to create a more conducive work environment.
”This government is particular about diversifying our economy and the role the agriculture sector has to play is very important, ” he said during an interactive session with the Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of NALDA, Engr. Cornelius Adebayo.
”This government is focusing very seriously on agriculture and food security and we trust that NALDA will continue to be innovative in its operations, including developing greenhouses and supporting the cultivation of more arable land across the country ” he added.
At BPP, the Chief of Staff while responding to a presentation by the acting Director-General, Olusegun Omotola, commended the agency for saving the Federal government some N1.7 trillion from 2009-2022 by blocking loopholes that would have been exploited during procurement.
”The Act establishing the Bureau is going through a review process that will make it meet international best practices, reduce corruption, red tape and bureaucracy.
”We will also look at the staff renumeration and why there has not been a review over the years, especially when compared with sister agencies like Debt Management Office whose renumeration and salary structure has been reviewed a couple of times over the years,” the Chief of Staff said in response to a request by BPP’s acting DG.
On the National Council on Procurement (NCP), which is an establishment of the law but has never been inaugurated since the creation of the Bureau, the Chief of Staff hinted that President Tinubu intends to inaugurate the Council, conscious of the need for the proposed amendments to the BPP Act.
Addressing the Bureau of Public Enterprises, Gbajabiamila commended the agency for remitting over N1trillion proceeds to the Federal government since 1999 and emphasized the need for improvement.
”We are ready to work with you to make you achieve your mandate optimally,” he assured.
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