Reducing Imo Workers' Working Days to Three

REDUCING IMO WORKERS’ WORKING DAYS TO THREE

      The last time I checked, the five existing working days of civil cum public servants in Imo State had been graciously reduced to three days, precisely from Monday to Wednesday, by the state governor Chief Rochas Okorocha. The state chief executive officer who made the disclosure two weeks ago, on Friday 29^th July 2016 to be precise, during his meeting with the delegation of Imo Royal fathers in Agriculture led by Eze Chidume Okoro, stated that the two days of grace including Thursday and Friday would be utilized strictly for farming.

     According to the governor, the declaration was informed by the urgent need to engage the teeming workers in the state’s new agricultural programme ‘Back to land for agriculture’ that was to commence on 1^st August 2016, which is expected to last for one calendar year. The governor who categorically made it clear that workers on essential duties to include those in the information, health, security, teaching and IGR drive sectors as well as political appointees are exempted from the free working days, went further to disclose that the bill for the initiative would be sent to the state’s House of Assembly for legal backing.

      It would be recalled that prior to the said declaration, the governor had during an interactive session with journalists in Owerri revealed that the state Executive Council was considering slashing the working days of Imo civil servants from the normal five days to three, to avail them the opportunity of engaging in other businesses or economic activities towards earning extra income to augment their respective salaries.

      As a constitution and rights activist, it’s pertinent to let the amiable governor comprehend fully that he had derailed by even thinking of such idea let alone making it public. Announcing suchlike policy is simply unconstitutional and lawless. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) constitutionally prescribed, at least, forty (40) hours per week to be spent by any public servant anywhere in the world; and the Nigerian 1999 Constitution, as amended, abides by the directive. This implies that the issue of workers’ working days isn’t even an affair to be deliberated by a group of state legislators let alone an individual in a position of authority.

     Our leaders must stop playing politics with constitutional matters, especially highly sensitive ones like this. They must learn to treat the constitution as a sacred document, or see its contents as sacrosanct. Putting up suchlike controversial policy or initiative unannounced is not unlike creating room for anarchy. The basic and rudimentary role of any executive leader is to fiercely safeguard the constitution guiding the society led by him/her, and not the other way round.

      It’s more troubling and mind-boggling that the idea came up when we are deeply concerned about the ongoing indolence on the part of the public servants. I’ve always been of the view that five days a week aren’t even enough for the workers to put up effective and efficient services; now we are discussing just three days. In other words, the well celebrated governor is encouraging the workers to be marred by laxity or apathy, which doesn’t augur well for the state. Even if the prime motive of the measure is to enable the workers create other sources of income, the free hours they already enjoy every week is sufficient for such intent if truly the worker is determined to diversify his/her income source.

      Funnily enough, the leader in question never bothered to discuss the opinion with other leaders or stakeholders before announcing it. Is he leading alone? Without mincing words, one person cannot lead a society, regardless of its size, talk more of a society like Imo State. A leader ought to learn to carry others along; the opinion of his/her subjects should equally be considered as paramount whenever such critical matter is being proposed.

      Besides, who told Gov Okorocha that the best way to encourage agriculture is by reducing the workers’ working days? The moment the news got to my desk, the first thing that occurred in my mind was that the governor lacked an adviser on agriculture. Even at that, he would have adequately consulted the cognoscenti before making his idea known to the general public, particularly Imolites. He may have a laudable and genuine mission as regards agriculture to execute, but the bitter truth is that he started wrongly.

       However, His Excellency never told us how he intends to monitor the workers toward ensuring that the free days in question are judiciously utilized as expected. For crying out loud; farming practices can be encouraged in so many ways without thwarting the healthiness of the civil/public service. The workers can be encouraged to massively embark on farming without asking them to work for only three days per week, contrary to the existing five working days. Someone who goes to work by 8am and comes back by 3pm on a daily basis, and only during the weekdays, has all the time in the world to participate actively in agriculture.

      Aside the workers, there are other groups that can be encouraged to embrace farming. For instance; the pensioners, if properly mobilized, can do wonders regarding the anticipated agricultural development. What they need is just the required funds coupled with farming incentives. What about the teeming jobless youths roaming the various streets/roads of the state on an hourly basis? Can’t they be mobilized as well as equipped to go into agriculture? So many jobless Imolites are earnestly yearning for an opportunity to venture into farming, but pathetically, the longed opportunity isn’t seemingly forthcoming.

      Agriculture which has been reckoned to be a very lucrative occupation cum business has abruptly become a thing of mockery not just in Imo State but Nigeria at large. We really need to go back to the drawing board. When everything is apparently going wrongly in any field of human endeavour, the most apt thing to do is to retrace our steps back to the genesis. In view of this, I enjoin Gov Rochas Okorocha, whom I owe an explicit respect for, to please for the interest of the state in general, reverse this policy in earnest and revisit the drawing board.

      Frankly, adjusting the working timeframe of the workers to between 7am and 4pm daily, unlike the usual 8am to 3pm, cannot in any way heal the wound this newly implemented measure/policy would cause the state in the long run, thus let’s make hay while the Sun shines. Think about it!

Comr Fred Doc Nwaozor

(TheMediaAmbassador)

-Researcher, Blogger, Public Affairs analyst & Civil Rights activist-

Chief Executive Director, Centre for Counselling, Research

& Career Development - Owerri

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