From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
Leading Civil Society Organisation (CSO), Foundation for Rights Enforcement, Enlightenment and Defence, has pleaded with members of the upper legislative chamber of National Assembly to reject a Concurrence Bill seeking an extension of retirement age from 60 to 65 years.
The group made the appeal in a statement by its leader, Mohammed Saidu, in reaction to the fight between the management of the National Assembly and some aggrieved staff.
It claimed that document sourced recently revealed that some members of the union in the National Assembly, allegedly signed a communique, endorsing the extension of service bill.
The group, according to the statement, alleged that the Clerk of the National Assembly, Magaji Sani Tambuwal, was behind the move to extend his stay in office, less than one year to the end of his tenure in office.
Saidu challenged the Clerk and other members of the union to reveal details of their terms of service when they joined the National Assembly bureaucracy.
He noted: “This time, we want to put it to the Clerk that he is misleading the 10th Assembly, using a compromised union to pursue his personal ambition of breaching the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“It is only the Clerk that thinks that the union has the capacity to regulate their service year. The same Clerk, during the election of the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, jettisoned the Senate rule on ranking, but rather used the 1999 constitution as amended.
“Today, the same Clerk wants to mislead the 10th Assembly by lobbying the National Assembly on a matter that is against the constitution. Ask the Clerk, did he not summon a meeting of the management of the National Assembly and the agenda was 65 years and 40 years?
“Ask the Clerk, did he not micro-manage the sham congress presided over by the Permanent Secretary, Human Resources, Birma Shaibu Maina? The man is supposed to proceed on leave this year. What do you expect from such a congress? Ask the Clerk who sponsored the public hearing done without any advert and was done the day the Nigerian Labour Congress went on strike?
“Ask the Clerk who is lobbying senators and members of the House of Representatives with gifts in form of aides appointment? This same Clerk and other permanent secretaries, who are penciled for retirement this year joined the union in rejecting the controversial bill in the past.
“Today, they want to mislead the 10th Assembly to pass a law at variance with the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Finally, we call on the Senate to kill this controversial bill in accordance with the Council on Establishment at its 45th meeting held December, 2023 in Bauchi.
“For the umpteenth time, reject outrightly the request for upward review of retirement age for public servants to 40 years and 60 years of age with the view that it is contrary to national aspirations of Renewed Hope, youth development, innovation, and also in tandem with the reality of our population dynamics,” Saidu noted.