By Our Correspondent
In a major reform of the Kano State civil service, the state government has directed 4,000 public servants to proceed on compulsory retirement following the termination of the 5-year service extension policy. This policy, initially introduced by the previous administration under Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, allowed workers to extend their service beyond the mandatory retirement age of 60 or 35 years of service.
The policy, aimed at reducing the government's financial burden in paying gratuities to new retirees, inadvertently blocked job opportunities for younger generations. After a thorough review by the Abba Yusuf administration, it was determined that 4,000 civil servants were benefiting from this extension.
The Head of Service, Abdullahi Musa, announced that these workers must submit their retirement letters by the end of September 2024, although they will remain in service until full retirement in December 2024. He emphasized that the government intends to replace the retiring workers with new employees, thus creating more job opportunities for residents.
Furthermore, Musa highlighted that the Ganduje administration had hired 13,000 civil servants. Upon review, the Yusuf administration retained 10,000 of these employees on a permanent and pensionable basis, while 3,000 were let go for reasons such as underage employment, being students, or failing to meet age requirements.
The government’s leniency in allowing the retirees to prepare for their departure is seen as a balanced approach toward ensuring both fiscal responsibility and job creation.
