Govs’ Obstinacy Stalls Talks With Judicial Workers

Efforts to resolve the lingering industrial action by judicial
and legislative workers over their agitations for financial
autonomy for state judiciaries and legislatures were stalled
yesterday following the inability of the federal government and
state governors to meet to harmonise their positions,
ThisDay
reports.^[1]

However, a source confided in THISDAY that the meeting of
federal government officials and representatives of the Nigeria
Governors’ Forum (NGF) will reconvene today to harmonise positions
on the implementation of financial autonomy for states’
legislatures and judiciaries.

THISDAY gathered that the disagreement stalled yesterday’s bid
to resolve the judicial and parliamentary workers’ strike as the
government team and the striking workers could not meet as
scheduled because of the differing positions of the federal
government and the governors.

While the federal government’s position is that the governors
should transfer the statutory allocations of the other two arms of
government to them directly, the state chief executives insisted on
making some deductions before remitting the money.

THISDAY gathered that the two parties will today decide on the
appropriate deductions to be made from the statutory allocations of
the states’ judiciaries and legislatures before remittance to
them.

The development also followed the rejection of the N100 million
irreducible monthly minimum offered each state’s legislature by the
governors in lieu of their statutory allocations.

The governors had offered the legislative arm N100 million but
the speakers of the states’ assemblies rejected the offer,
insisting on N250 million.

The governors had also offered in the alternative, to pay the
two tiers of government their allocations from the Federation
Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), but on the condition that
legacy debts and money for capital projects would first be deducted
before remitting the net balance to the other two arms of
government.

But the states’ legislatures and judiciaries have insisted on
being paid their gross allocations from FAAC.

But a source close to the presidency told THISDAY yesterday that
the representatives of the governors and the federal government
officials would meet today to harmonise their positions on the
option of deductions before presenting their common position to the
striking workers.

He said the meeting would determine what constituted capital
projects that should be deducted and what constituted revenue
inflow.

When asked whether the federal government and the states have
agreed on how to address the demands of the judiciary and
parliamentary workers, the source said: “It’s work in progress. We
are still meeting. For the government side, we will be meeting
tomorrow (Tuesday). We all need to be on one page; that is the
government side before we put anything on paper as Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU). We are to look at what constitutes capital
projects. They will be defined. The second issue is to look at what
constitutes the revenue inflow”.

The source also confirmed that there were areas that had been
agreed on like the setting up of the Funds Committee and its
composition.

The governors had agreed that the National Judicial Council
(NJC) would handle funds for states’ judicial councils.

However, they insisted that they would deduct loans and legacy
debts from their allocations.
In a bid to resolve the issues and end the ongoing industrial
dispute, the federal government had scheduled to hold talks
yesterday with the striking workers.

But the talks could not hold due to the inability of the
government side to come up with one position.

However, the Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria ( PASAN)
had said its members would continue the strike until full financial
autonomy of the state legislatures was implemented.

The agitation by the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN)
and PASAN for the implementation of financial autonomy for the
judiciary and legislative arms of government in states, as
stipulated by the 1999 Constitution as altered, has led to the
shutdown of courts nationwide for the third week running.

Efforts to resolve the lingering industrial action by judicial
and legislative workers over their agitations for financial
autonomy for state judiciaries and legislatures were stalled
yesterday following the inability of the federal government and
state governors to meet to harmonise their positions,
ThisDay
reports.^[1]

However, a source confided in THISDAY that the meeting of
federal government officials and representatives of the Nigeria
Governors’ Forum (NGF) will reconvene today to harmonise positions
on the implementation of financial autonomy for states’
legislatures and judiciaries.

THISDAY gathered that the disagreement stalled yesterday’s bid
to resolve the judicial and parliamentary workers’ strike as the
government team and the striking workers could not meet as
scheduled because of the differing positions of the federal
government and the governors.

While the federal government’s position is that the governors
should transfer the statutory allocations of the other two arms of
government to them directly, the state chief executives insisted on
making some deductions before remitting the money.

THISDAY gathered that the two parties will today decide on the
appropriate deductions to be made from the statutory allocations of
the states’ judiciaries and legislatures before remittance to
them.

The development also followed the rejection of the N100 million
irreducible monthly minimum offered each state’s legislature by the
governors in lieu of their statutory allocations.

The governors had offered the legislative arm N100 million but
the speakers of the states’ assemblies rejected the offer,
insisting on N250 million.

The governors had also offered in the alternative, to pay the
two tiers of government their allocations from the Federation
Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), but on the condition that
legacy debts and money for capital projects would first be deducted
before remitting the net balance to the other two arms of
government.

But the states’ legislatures and judiciaries have insisted on
being paid their gross allocations from FAAC.

But a source close to the presidency told THISDAY yesterday that
the representatives of the governors and the federal government
officials would meet today to harmonise their positions on the
option of deductions before presenting their common position to the
striking workers.

He said the meeting would determine what constituted capital
projects that should be deducted and what constituted revenue
inflow.

When asked whether the federal government and the states have
agreed on how to address the demands of the judiciary and
parliamentary workers, the source said: “It’s work in progress. We
are still meeting. For the government side, we will be meeting
tomorrow (Tuesday). We all need to be on one page; that is the
government side before we put anything on paper as Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU). We are to look at what constitutes capital
projects. They will be defined. The second issue is to look at what
constitutes the revenue inflow”.

The source also confirmed that there were areas that had been
agreed on like the setting up of the Funds Committee and its
composition.

The governors had agreed that the National Judicial Council
(NJC) would handle funds for states’ judicial councils.

However, they insisted that they would deduct loans and legacy
debts from their allocations.
In a bid to resolve the issues and end the ongoing industrial
dispute, the federal government had scheduled to hold talks
yesterday with the striking workers.

But the talks could not hold due to the inability of the
government side to come up with one position.

However, the Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria ( PASAN)
had said its members would continue the strike until full financial
autonomy of the state legislatures was implemented.

The agitation by the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN)
and PASAN for the implementation of financial autonomy for the
judiciary and legislative arms of government in states, as
stipulated by the 1999 Constitution as altered, has led to the
shutdown of courts nationwide for the third week running.