By Uche Amunike
President Bola Tinubu has ordered directives for the Nigerian UNGA Delegation Reduction at the forthcoming 79th session of the assembly, which will hold in New York, United States, this September.
This disclosure was made by the president’s chief of staff, Gemi Gbajabiamila on Saturday in Abuja during a one day retreat organized by the State House management for heads of government agencies under its supervision.
The theme of the retreat was ‘Strengthening Institutional Mechanism for Effective Delivery.’
Speaking, through a statement signed and released by Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale and titled: ‘President Tinubu Directs that Only authorized Officials with Business at UNGA should Attend’, Ngelale explained that there were talks about reducing costs of governance during the recent protests held in the country, therefore, Nigerians were waiting to see if the federal government will send the largest delegation to the United Nations General Assembly as they have been prone to do in the past.
His words: ‘During recent protests, there were talks about reduction in the cost of governance. Everyone is waiting to see if Nigeria, as in the past, will send the ‘largest delegation’ to UNGA.’
‘From experience, we know that some individuals use the opportunity of such international meetings to go about their personal businesses.’
‘I have received a directive from Mr. President that this time, we will be strict. If you have no business at the UN General Assembly, do not step foot in America, and this is a directive from Mr. President.’
He further stated that the federal government’s decision for Nigeria’s delegation to UNGA reduction was partly informed by their commitment towards ensuring that there is a prudent management of resources and reduction in the cost of governance.
He also stated the need for the State House and agencies under its supervision to see that its functions are guided by statutes, policy decisions, presidential directives and regulations.
Gbajabiamila also noted that the retreat will facilitate collaboration and coordination among government agencies, especially those directly supervised by the State House. His words: ‘The idea is to ensure coherence as we jointly work together to achieve the objectives of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
He pointed out upcoming policy announcements aimed at ensuring standard service delivery in government operations and stated that from the recent discussions he had with the president, the new policy will be tested during UNGA, in the next few weeks in New York.
He called on heads of agencies at the retreat to strictly comply to the given directives at the retreat, as the president is listening to the concerns of Nigerians and is committed to addressing them diligently. Coordination is not just a choice but a necessity for the government to succeed and for us to meet the expectations of the Nigerian people.
He stated that the retreat will be a continuous exercise, because governance is an evolving process that needs regular adjustments and for the State House management and chief executives of agencies that are supervised by them should lead by example by seeing that statutes,, regulations, laws and other policies that are designed to enhance governance are complied with.
He concluded: ‘We must demonstrate excellence in our compliance with the Public Procurement Act, Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria Act, the Finance Act, and various appropriation acts in operation.’
‘Compliance with the civil service rules and the scheme of service guidelines, especially regarding recruitment, promotion and presidential approvals is also non-negotiable.’
