Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association has said it is worrisome that with over 250 institutions, parastatals and agencies of government, the average cost of governance in Nigeria remains among the highest globally.

The association stated this while commending the Federal Government for approving the implementation of the Oronsanye report.

The report was submitted to President Goodluck Jonathan on April 16, 2012.

Director-General, NECA, Mr Timothy Olawale, said it was  commendable that President Muhammadu Buhari had taken the bold step of approving the implementation of the Oronsanye report, about eight years after its submission to the last administration.

He said, “Over the past years, we have reiterated that the implementation of the report is fundamental to the institutionalisation of operational efficiency and reduction of government expenditure in the long term.

“It is worrisome that with over 250 institutions, parastatals and agencies of government, the average cost of governance in Nigeria remains among the highest globally.”

Shedding light on the need for a wholesale implementation of the report, the NECA boss cautioned against the Oronsanye report suffering the fate of the Ahmed Joda panel report and the Allison Ayida report of 1995.

He said both reports made bold attempt to recommend the rationalisation of government agencies and parastatals, adding,  “However, both suffered fatal fate because of the lack of political will to implement the reports.”

Olawale stressed that all efforts must be made to see to a logical conclusion, the implementation of the Oronsanye report as directed by Mr Buhari.

He pointed out that recent global economic downturn had proved that the country could not afford the burden of wasted billions of naira and overlapping roles of some of the ministries, departments and agencies of government.

He added that some overlapping activities of the MDAs hindered the ease of doing business efforts of the government.

For the cost of governance to be reduced and to ensure fiscal discipline, government must go beyond the implementation of the Oronsanye report and deliberately reduce other leakages arising from over-bloated retinue of aides of political officers and expenditure profile with no direct national development impact.

“The government must also fast-track the deregulation of the downstream oil sector and re-chart the course for rapid diversification of the economy. Herein lays our path to national economic and social renaissance,” he stated.

Punch