President Muhammadu Buhari may terminate the appointments of all those who were employed by the government of former President Goodluck Jonathan, and similarly terminate the contracts awarded by the same regime in the last 18 months, if the recommendations of the Ahmed Joda transition committee report are to be implemented.
The committee recommended to President Buhari to immediately terminate all dubious appointments in the last nine months, and review all contracts awarded by the Jonathan administration in the last 18 months, saying that such measure would help the new government to sidestep ineptitude and waste, and scale up its revenue base.
It noted that the recommendations are part of a portfolio of swift steps which President. Buhari must take within three months of assumption of power if he must save cost and “enhance liquidity.”
The 800-page report, which contained extensive analyses of Nigeria’s key challenges, with suggested responses for the economy and finance, governance and social welfare, also details a list of prompt, medium and long term decisions which President. Buhari must take, or authorise, within 30, 45, 60 and 90 days of taking office, to create immediate impact, reduce government liability, increase revenue and stabilise the polity.
To deal with crippling fuel crisis, and backlog of unpaid salaries by states and the federal government, the committee advised the President to “borrow immediately or use CBN (Central Bank) advances” for salaries and fuel subsidies to “avoid chaos.”
It stressed: “Non-strategic contracts that have not commenced or where no payments have been made can be cancelled,” the committee said, even as it advised the President to negotiate exits for projects where mobilisation payments have been made but work not commenced.
That move, the committee said, will save expenditure on non-strategic projects, and can free up cash flows for other vital initiatives.
The decision on contract is to be taken within 90 days from May 29, and should be handled by the Federal Executive Council and the Bureau of Public Procurement, BPP.
As part of the measures to check waste and increase efficiency and accountability, the committee advised the government to quickly implement a single bank account, to be called Treasury Single Account, and to commence full implementation of the Fiscal Responsibility Act within 60 days, and chase up any outstanding funds from all government offices.
The committee said the handover notes from the Jonathan administration showed aggregate contractor liabilities of N4 trillion as at April 2015.
Of that amount, the Ministry of Education owed the most at N1.2 trillion, followed by the finance ministry which has N467.7 billion.
The committee warned President Buhari that it would be irrational to rely on the purported huge balances the former government claimed it left behind, because the numbers lacked key information to establish the authenticity of the contracts. [myad]
