Shehu Sani reacts to Oransaye report, says agencies can't be merged anyhow

A former lawmaker representing the Kaduna Central Senatorial District, Shehu Sani has stated a few reasons why the Oransaye report may not work.

Taking to Twitter, he said agencies or departments can't be merged without repelling the law that established them.

Shehu's words: "No Agency or Department of the Federal Government can be merged with another without repelling the law that established it and making a new one by the parliament."

No Agency or Department of the Federal Government can be merged with another without repelling the law that established it and making a new one by the parliament.

— Senator Shehu Sani (@ShehuSani) May 2, 2020

This is coming after President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) approved the implementation of a report submitted by the presidential committee on restructuring and rationalization of federal government parastatals, commissions and agencies during the Goodluck Jonathan administration.

Commonly called the Oransaye report, the 800-paged report had recommended the abolishment and merging of 102 government agencies and parastatals.

Stephen Oransaye, a former head of civil service, had headed a committee set up by Buhari’s predecessor to identify civil service inadequacies.

At the time, the seven-man committee said the “rationalization of agencies, parastatals and commissions would have human dimensions and cost implications” and recommended that the government should focus on empowering the MDAs “to do more for less.”

At the time when the report was submitted, there were 541 government parastatals, commissions and agencies (statutory and non-statutory) in the country and the report recommended a reduction in the number of statutory agencies from 263 to 161.

At present, the number of federal agencies has increased and it is estimated to be close to 1,000.