Bayelsa: APC Raises Alarm Over Late Appointments By Governor Seriake Dickson
Bayelsa State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has queried the decision of Governor Seriake Dickson, with regards to the appointment if 35 permanent secretaries three months to the end of his administration.
Dickson at the weekend inaugurated 35 permanent secretaries and a Commissioner, Felix Sam-Ateki with the charge that they work with the incoming administration to achieve full implementation of the civil service reforms.
The governor urged them to avoid partisan politics and focus on the execution of policies and programmes of government.
Reacting to the appointment in a statement signed by its State Secretary, Alabo Martins, APC chided the governor saying that the party was aware of what it described as clandestine indiscriminate employment going on across various MDAs without recourse to due process.
The party said while they were not opposed to such appointments, especially if they were in tandem with civil service rules and regulations, they had their reservations about the timing of the appointments.
“If the outgoing administration was aware of the existence of these vacancies in the top echelon of the public service of the state and that the situation was creating a lull in the service, why were the vacancies left unfilled until the eventide of the administration.
“No doubt, the appointments are in bad taste just as the motive is clearly political and an effort to put the popular incoming government on a bad light by ensuring that we are financially triangulated.
“We appreciate the fact that until February 14, 2020, the present administration has the constitutional powers to hire and fire but this responsibility should be carried out in the best interest of the state and its people. We must say that the present scenario is just for the satisfaction of some political interests and therefore falls far short of the wider interests of the state,” Martins said.
He, therefore, advised the Government to concentrate on completing uncompleted projects, such as the 8year old Isaac Boro expressway.
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“We also call on Bayelsans to hold the restoration government response in the future if some of these decisions are reviewed for the betterment of Bayelsa.
“We are aware that employment is a means of empowering citizens of the state, mostly the youths. It curtails restiveness and other social vices in the state.
“However, the employment of the restoration government does not follow acceptable procedures, apart from the Forest Officers and a few others. The government did not lift the embargo on employment until January this year when one thousand graduates were employed. But, pockets of employment were carried out from time to time with names directly forwarded by His Excellency, the outgoing governor”.
According to Martins, the appointments were supposed to be on geographical spread to the eight local governments areas but that they were one-sided with some local councils having more than others.
“The rules and procedures do not allow applicants to apply for employment directly to the Governor. But, this is practice in the state. Integration of officers from the plastic industry was haphazardly done. It created an avenue for irregularities in the system which allows illegal employment into the civil service.
“This created an irregular transfer of officers from one organisation or establishments to another under the governor’s directives. The officers are moved without promotions and were stagnated on grade level, for example, environmental sanitation authority staff moved to SUBEB, and from SUBEB to civil service. Then from SSSB/Radio Bayelsa etc. to the international institute of tourism and hospitality and the civil service.
“Transferring officers to MDAS without considering the promotion prospects and headship of the department by deserving or serving officers. No vacancy is sort in the relevant grade and cadre before the transfer is effected. No proper applications and routing of letters by applicants before transfers are effected for some officers”, he said.
