Don’t compound tough situation of Nigerians, Tinubu warns civil servants

President Bola Tinubu has warned senior civil servants against compounding the tough situation of Nigerians.

Daily Trust reports that Nigerians have been complaining of hardship, which has triggered protests in different parts of the country.

This followed the removal of fuel subsidy and some monetary policies during the President’s inaugural speech on May 29, 2023.

Tinubu, who met with the Head of Service, The Body Of Permanent Secretaries, and some Directors-General of agencies at the State House, on Thursday, said policies impacting the welfare of the people and the economy must be treated with urgency, diligence, and a strong sense of duty.

Tinubu asked public servants to always think and work with a generational understanding of their role in shaping national history, knowing that they serve as the engine room of the government and that their actions will affect more than 200 million people in the country and abroad.

Tinubu said: “Let us make our children’s dreams come true. Why are we slowing that down?

“It is not just shameful. It is unacceptable. We made a pledge to bring our people out of poverty. You should not increase their vulnerability. Help Nigerians to get out of these problems, do not compound the tough situation with unacceptable delays.”

The President warned that the ineffectiveness and unnecessary bureaucracy that result in the delay of interventions on the economy and with programmes targeting vulnerable citizens would not be tolerated.

He directed that a monthly briefing by The Head Of Service and submission of key performance indicator (KPI) reports should be made to his office for review, and that quarterly interactive meetings between the President and The Body of Permanent Secretaries will now be scheduled.

The Head Of Service and The Body Of Permanent Secretaries were mandated by the President to consistently measure progress in actualizing the Renewed Hope Agenda of his administration.

“Before the next meeting, I want to see progress in the civil service. I have been sending people to check the level of work that gets done. Service to the nation is extremely important. We are to change the narrative on Nigeria.

“You and I can change the perception about Africa, not just Nigeria. We might not get it 100 percent right, but if we are focused, I think we can totally change and reshape the trajectory of our country in the right direction,’’ he said.

Earlier, the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Dr. Folasade Yemi-Esan briefed the President on the performance of the service in relation to previously established KPIs across multiple assessment streams.