Bauchi Perm Sec Pledges Loyalty To New Administration

Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed, Governor, Bauchi State

The Permanent Secretary with the Bauchi State Ministry for Local Government Affairs, Alhaji Ali Babayo has said that the civil service is the only machinery for the implementation of government policies and programmes.

He said, “The civil service is the only machinery for the implementation of government policies. It is expected that we all take part in the various decisions that the government is going to formulate, implement and even evaluate in the state.

Babayo who was speaking while addressing Heads of Administration of the twenty Local Government Councils now saddled with the responsibility of steering the ships of the councils following the dissolution of the care-taker committees by the new PDP administration in the state.

It could be recalled that Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed last week immediately after taking the oath of office as the sixth executive governor of the state dissolved caretaker committees of the twenty Local Governments with a directive for the HOAs to take control of them.

The permanent secretary explained that civil servants who are politically neutral are supposed to be loyal to the government in power because it is their only constituency, hence there is no cause for divided loyalty.

“Our loyalty to the government is one hundred percent, there should be no 99.9% loyalty, it has to be an absolute loyalty, so we should as much as possible try to be loyal to the government in power”, Babayo stated.

Alhaji Ali Babayo therefore directed the Local Government heads of administration to step down the message to all directors in the councils, warning that any local government personnel found wanting in the discharge of his official duties has no one to blame but himself.

“As far as we are concern, there is a new government in place and we are going to show our absolute loyalty to the government. We are going to make sure that we contribute positively in the policy formulation, implementation, and all other things that the government in power is out to achieve for the state”.

He told the HOAs, “I will also like to seize this opportunity to kindly request you, as you go back to your respective Local Governments compile the current disposition lists of the various staff working in your respective areas”.

Babayo expressed optimism that the new administration in the state is going to come up with various reform measures that will significantly improve the welfare of the people generally.

The permanent secretary concluded, “I congratulate you on your new appointments, I believe you are equal to the tasks and I want you as much as possible prove to the government that you are equal to the tasks. Try as much as possible to show the difference, to be in control in your local government councils, to assist the government succeed in all ramifications”.

The Bauchi Local Government Council Head of administration, Abdullahi Musa who responded on behalf of his colleagues, assured that they will live up to their responsibilities, and pledged the councils’ total support to the new administration in the state.