The Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, plays a significant role in curtailing daily collisions on our roads and highways as well as rescuing lives of accident victims from the jaws of death by providing cardinal post-crash care to them. So, special attention deserves to be paid to this life-saving agency because of being under the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
Unfortunately, the reverse is the case for the agency as huge numbers of staff holding HND certificates are still encountering a lingering disparity in terms of proper and regular promotion. These corps, whose highest qualification is HND, have stagnated on a particular rank and salary like a non-functioning vehicle since their entry into the agency. This menace of long stagnation has enmeshed HND holders in abject dramatisation in spite of an emergence of a federal government circular giving millions of HND holders a ray of hope across the country.
In that federal government circular, dated March 26, 2018, and released by the then Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Winifred Oyo-Ita,said,” HND holders will enjoy salary Grade Level 08 (SGL08) in the civil service at the entry point like their colleagues with degrees. It also encouraged those serving officers who hold HND to fulfil all specified conditions in the scheme of service and extant rules for career progression beyond SGL 14.
Shortly after the announcement of that federal government circular, it was reported that the entire paramilitary agencies and services that are under this ministry are now enjoying their lost ranks and salaries. But, for HND holders of the FRSC, the case is different owing to its inability to abide by the federal government circular concerning the harmonisation of ranks and salaries. Thus, the crucial question here is, what happened to the decision taken by the management meeting of the FRSC held on Wednesday, January 13, 2021, with regard to the harmonization of ranks and salaries for corps holding HND certificates?
It has been recently confirmed that HND holders of the agency were cumulatively stagnated on a particular rank and salaries since 2010 were promoted on the same level, which is level 08. A poser is what about remaining level 9, 10 and 11 for those who have been looking for them for more than a decade and their lost ranks?
On June 2, 2021, millions of Nigeria’s HND holders witnessed a dawn of hope when the senate read for the third time and passed the lingering bill seeking to abolish the dichotomy between the HND and first degree certificates. The bill is now on President Muhammadu Buhari’s table waiting for assent into law so as to put an end to unscrupulous disparity against them and pull them out of an ineffable hardship. Millions of HND holders have already pinned their hope on their empathetic president whose spirit is filled with patriotism and well-being for the masses. To be frank, signing the bill is absolutely analogous to opening a new page of improving the miserable lives of those HND holders and their children.
I strongly call on the newly appointed Corps Marshal of the FRSC, Mr. Dauda Adamu Biu, to spare no effort in wiping off the tears of HND holders in his agency by conducting a general promotion exercise and lateral conversion for them on the spot as enshrined in that federal government circular regarding harmonization of salaries and ranks. He should also ensure that those who are due for promotion,are given full and accelerated promotion. Time is going faster and it is flexible. It requires speeding up in some situations like this and slowing down in others.
Mustapha Baba Azare,
Azare, Bauchi state
08149712150
