The Niger State Head of Service, Salisu Abubakar has explained that Governor Mohammed Bago increased the number of ministries from 23 to 30 to recruit more people into the civil service and also absorb casual workers, some of whom had been in that position for 20 years.
At the handing and taking over ceremony of the new permanent secretaries of the Ministries of Work and Infrastructural Development, Hassan Etsu; and Power and Renewable Energy, Lucky Barau; the Head of Service said that, over the years, he had been calling for the recruitment of more people and the absorption of casual workers into the civil service and was happy that the governor created the opportunity.
Abubakar said: “We have 30 ministries now from 23. It’s part of what gives me joy because it is expanding opportunities for civil servants. Before now, I was opportune to be in a position to advise the previous government to do recruitment. And anytime we move for recruitment, they will ask us to show them the source of funding. I’m just telling you the reason why salaries were moved to the Head of Service and later it was moved to the Ministry of Science and Technology.
“Now, we don’t have officers on level 6, level 7, level 8, level 9, even level 10 are very few. We are trying to do a census on how to get this thing right and we said the best way to go about it is to create newer ministries, which our boss approved. Now, we have the Ministry of Energy and Power; we have the Ministry of Primary Healthcare, the Ministry of Nomadic and Pastoral Affairs, Ministry of Humanitarian and Disaster Management and we have the Ministry for Small, Medium, and Vocational Skills Development and Entrepreneurship.
“The essence of these ministries is to create space for new recruitment. We have 434 directors in the ministries. Now, if you take a census of 30 ministries with a minimum of six directors in each ministry, 212 deputy directors and 24 assistant directors in each ministry, that is how we will move so that the pyramid will keep on expanding below. So, you can see that opportunities are being created”.
He gave an assurance that, with the support of the staff members of the ministries, the days of casual workers were over.
