The Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) has called on the Federal Government to create additional director-level positions across the public service to address prolonged career stagnation among qualified civil servants.
The union said expanding directorate positions would improve employee morale, enhance productivity, and strengthen service delivery across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
Speaking at a news conference on Wednesday at King’s College, Lagos, ASCSN National Vice President, Olubunmi Fajobi, reaffirmed the association’s opposition to the Federal Government’s proposed concession of 120 Federal Government Colleges, popularly known as unity schools. He warned that the policy could make quality public education less affordable and threaten the jobs of thousands of workers.
Fajobi urged the Federal Government to abandon the concession proposal and instead provide adequate funding to improve infrastructure, teaching, and learning across the schools.
He noted that many civil servants have remained on the same grade level for years despite meeting all the requirements for promotion because of the limited number of vacancies at the directorate level.
According to Fajobi, creating additional director-level positions would enable deserving officers to advance in their careers, boost staff morale, and improve service delivery across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies.
As part of the proposed reforms, he recommended separating senior secondary schools from their junior secondary counterparts so that each would be headed by a different director. He also suggested restructuring large departments into smaller units led by directors and upgrading strategic units within MDAs into full-fledged departments to create additional director-level positions.
Fajobi further appealed to the Federal Government to introduce palliative measures for public servants to cushion the effects of the prevailing economic hardship.
He said soaring inflation and the rising cost of living had placed considerable financial pressure on workers and their families, making additional government intervention necessary.
Fajobi expressed confidence that addressing career stagnation, safeguarding public education, and providing economic relief for workers would improve staff morale and enhance the overall efficiency of the public service.
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