A video showing Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordination, Hadiza Usman, has been circulating on social media platforms with the caption, “President Bola Tinubu scraps Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, [FRCN], Economic and Financial Crimes Commission [EFCC], Independent Corrupt Practices Commission [ICPC], Nigeria Centre for Disease Control [NCDC], Nigeria Communication Commission [NCC], Nigeria Television Authority[NTA] Several others.”
Claim: Federal government has scrapped key government agencies in Nigeria.
The Explainer fact checker observed that the claim was linked to Osanroye report.
Background:
The Oronsaye Report, was the outcome of the work of the Presidential Committee on Restructuring and Rationalisation of Federal Government Parastatals, Commissions and Agencies. It was set up in 2011 by former President Goodluck Jonathan. The committee was chaired by Steve Oronsaye, the former Head of Service of the Federation.
The report, submitted on April 16, 2012, is an 800-page document that recommended the abolition and merger of 102 government agencies and parastatals. Some were suggested to be self-funding. It aimed to cut the huge cost of governance in Nigeria, especially in the face of dwindling economic fortunes. The report highlighted the high level of competition and overlap among several agencies, leading to unnecessary wastage in government expenditure.
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Findings:
The Explainer fact checker broke down the video into several keyframes using the INVID tools and subjected some of the keyframes to a Google Reverse Image Search. The result indicated that the video with the claim has been online since Feb. 27, 2024. It was first posted by a TikTok users @glowrealmeracool, with the caption “President Tinubu scraps, EFCC, ICPC, NCDC, NCC, NTA Several others.”
A keyword search of the claim found the original video link on Channels Television YouTube. The video showed that Hadiza Bala Usman speaking about merging the agencies, not scrapping them. The Explainer fact checker also did not find any other credible media platform that reported the news about scraping the agencies.
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On Feb. 26, 2024, President Bola Tinubu ordered the full implementation of the Oronsaye report. As a result, the Federal Government announced the merging, subsuming, scrapping, and relocation of several agencies. In the 800-page report, the only agencies to be scrapped are the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate, with its functions transferred to the Federal Ministry of Finance, and the National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC), with its functions transferred to the Department of Basic and Secondary Education in the Federal Ministry of Education.
Verdict: MISLEADING
Conclusion:
The claim that the Federal Government has scrapped key government agencies like Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, [FRCN], Economic and Financial Crimes Commission [EFCC], Independent Corrupt Practices Commission [ICPC], Nigeria Centre for Disease Control [NCDC], Nigeria Communication Commission [NCC], Nigeria Television Authority[NTA] is MISLEADING. The video of Hadiza Bala Usman, President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Policy and Coordination, speaks about the merger and relocation of some government agencies, not the scrapping of the agencies.