Some
stakeholders have expressed support for the decision of Imo and Benue
governments to reduce working days to boost agricultural production in the
country.
They stakeholders, in a nationwide survey conducted by the News Agency
of Nigeria (NAN), described the move as a step in the right direction.
NAN
reports that Benue Government had directed its workers to return to farm on
Fridays while Imo earmarked Thursday and Friday for farming.
In the South-East,
Mrs Nnenna Igwe, an agricultural entrepreneur in Ebonyi, said the policy was
good but expressed concern over its genuineness and sincerity.
A lawyer, Mr
Jude Chukwu, while expressing support for the policy, said that employers were
empowered by law to determine the conditions of service of their employees at
the point of entry.
Chukwu argued that governors, through the Houses of
Assembly, could make laws that stipulate conditions of service for their
workforce. He added that such laws were implemented by the Civil Service
Commission of the states.
“I think state governors who have adopted the policy
of allowing their workforce to work for only three days have not breached the constitution
or ILO Convention,’’ Chukwu said.
In the North-East, Dr Kajit Bogu, the
Coordinator, Movement for Cognitive Justice, a charity organisation established
to ensure justice for all, described the idea as novel. Bogu noted that the action of the Imo governor was
new in the history of the country. “Although the action is facing some level of
criticism, but one should ask how much work do our civil servants normally do?
“They spend most of the working hours doing nothing, because there is not much to
be done.
“You must agree with me that a lot of our workers are redundant.
“So,
if the government can make them productive in the farms, then it is a good
development,’’ Bogu said. In South-West, Dr Misbau Lawal, the National
Coordinator for Health and Environment, Basic Registry and Information System
in Nigeria, advised states with plans for farming to designate some work days
for farming only.
According to him, there is the need to employ drastic
measures in order to inculcate the culture of farming in Nigeria.
“If this
initiative is successful, other states can start importing food from the state;
the government can give loan to people to motivate them to farm.
“Nigeria has
to take desperate measures in this circumstance to attune people’s attitude towards
farming,’’ Lawal said. Also, Prof.
Yahya Oyewole-Imam, the Research Manager of
Centre for Research Development and In-House Training, University of Ilorin,
said that before such a move, certain things should be considered.
“There must
be desired objectives; if the objective is articulated and achievable, fine,
but if it is not realistic, there may not be need for such a step,’’
Oyewole-Imam said. Some workers, who spoke with NAN, said that engaging in
farming might reduce the level of suffering while others said it would
encourage laziness always associated with civil servants.
Dr Olutunji Oyelade,
a senior lecturer at the Department of International Law, Obafemi Awolowo
University, Ile-Ife, said governors had the right to reduce work hours.
According to him, this can be done provided their salaries will not be
affected. Oyelade said that ‘back to farm policy’ would pave the way for civil
servants to contribute to food production in the country.
Also, Mr Jamiu
Okanlawon, an economist, said there was nothing wrong in reducing the work
hours for civil servants so that they could engage in farming and help the
economy. Okanlawon said that the structure of the civil service had made it
technically unproductive, hence the urgent need to overhaul the system.
“I subscribe
to reduction in work hours, if it will make workers to be more productive and
make them to engage in other productive activities,’’ he said. Also in the
South-South, Mr Dako Gideon, who spoke in Benin, said that cutting working days
would benefit the state and increase food production. “It will give opportunity
for workers to embrace farming and will increase and bring about food sufficiency,’’
Gideon argued.(NAN)
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