•From left: Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission, Prof Tunji Olaopa, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy and Coordination, Hadiza Bala Usman, National Programme Manager for the Foreign Commonwealth Development Office Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (FCDO-PERL), Ifeanyi Peters Ugwuoke, and Representative of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, Sir Olusegun Adekunle at the formal opening of the technical retreat for Delivery Desk Officers of federal ministries on the implementation of presidential priorities and ministerial deliverables in Uyo on Wednesday.
The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy & Coordination and Head Central Delivery and Coordination Unit Hadiza Bala Usman, has said that the President will drop ministers who do not deliver on their mandates.
Speaking at the opening of the technical retreat for delivery desk officers of federal ministries on implementation of presidential priorities and ministerial deliverables in Uyo on Wednesday, Bala Usman who is also the Head of the Central Coordinating and Delivery Unit (CDCU), said the President is serious about delivering on his promise to make life better and easier for Nigerians.
While asking for the total commitment of delivery officers and directors of planning in ministries who were present at the retreat, she admonished, “we must understand that the president is very serious about his promises and that ministers will be assessed, and ministers will be dropped if they don’t perform. You must understand that as ministerial delivery desk officers you are the engine room that will provide that feedback and constantly track ministerial progress and report challenges and bottle to the CDCU.”
She explained that the retreat was to introduce the delivery officers to the framework of the delivery chain for progress tracking and build the officers’ capacity on monitoring of the delivery plan.
According to her: “The assessment will look at granular tangible outcomes that affect the lives of citizens. As I was saying at the Ministry of Aviation recently, we will be assessing FAAN on customers experience at the airports; are the escalators, lifts, and conveyor belts functional? How swift is security clearance both for passengers and vehicles in accessing the airport? What are the consequences of delayed time of departure for airlines? These are things that everybody can feel and see. When we are talking about agriculture, we want to see our index of fertiliser use per hectare grow in view of the attendant investment that has been made in fertiliser interventions. At the Ministry of Finance, we will assess the Nigerian Customs Services on the timeliness for inspection and clearance of import and export of cargo. At the Ministry of Finance again, we will also assess them on the timeliness of resources availability to MDAs which is core to the delivery of any mandate.
She reiterated to the participants that they are the “engine room to the feedback needed for this assessment and we encourage you to put your optimal performance in the interest of every Nigerian.”
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume who was represented by former Permanent Secretary, General Services Office, Sir Olusegun Adekunle, reminded participants about President Tinubu’s to ensure the active and direct participation of citizens in governance and the role they need to play in ensure that MDAs deliver on their mandates.
He said: “In the words of the President, let me reiterate that the Renewed Hope Agenda is more than just economic growth. It is also about building a more just and equitable society for all Nigerians. It is about creating jobs, improving education and health, and reducing poverty. It is about ensuring that all Nigerians have the opportunity to succeed.”
In his intervention, Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission, Prof Tunji Olaopa noted that “the strength of every democratic state is the quality of its institution and the capacity to deliver services to citizens. He enjoined the delivery officers to acquire as much knowledge as they can for effective delivery.
The National Programme Manager for the Foreign Commonwealth Development Office Partnership (to Engage, Reform and Learn (FCDO-PERL), who are technical partners of the CDCU, Ifeanyi Peters Ugwuoke, praised President Tinubu for his commitment to delivering on his promises to the people and giving support to the CDCU. He encouraged the delivery officers to put in their best into the assignment noting that the President’s support suggests that this was the best time to enhance public service delivery in Nigeria.
Welcoming participants, Coordinators of the CDCU, Esege, Ebei Esege, said that the retreat is expected to equip them with requisite knowledge to deliver on the eight priorities of the Tinubu administration and encouraged them to learn, unlearn and relearn in the period.
Dignitaries at the opening ceremony included the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, represented by former Permanent Secretary, General Services Office, Sir Olusegun Adekunle Secretary to the Akwa Ibom State Government, Prince Enobong Uwah and Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission, Prof Tunji Olaopa