Reps approve bill raising retirement age of NASS staff to 65

On the House of Representatives floor, the bill aiming to raise the retirement age for National Assembly employees passed Second Reading.

Hon. Aliyu Sani Madaki, the deputy minority leader, was the sponsor of the private member bill.

The contentious bill faced significant obstacles during the 8th and 9th Assemblies due to opposition from a range of stakeholders who contended that raising the retirement age from 60 to 65 years old and the service requirement from 35 to 40 years old would result in worker attrition and stagnation.
Nonetheless, Hon. Madaki clarified in his lead discussion on Tuesday, 1111, that the purpose of the bill is to establish an independent and unified retirement age for National Assembly employees.

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A retirement age of 65 years or 40 years of service, whichever comes first, was also suggested in the proposed legislation.

He claimed that the National Assembly’s professional staff would function more efficiently as a result of this prolongation.

Hon. Ali Isa, who backed the bill, said that it will preserve the staff members’ specific knowledge in the National Assembly.

He said that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), which is already in effect in many other countries of the world, has also urged for this universal extension.
Speaking as well, Hon. Abdullahi Rasheed contended that if the bill is signed into law, it will ensure that the National Assembly’s staff members fulfill the intricate nature of their duties and will raise their morale.

The bill was forwarded to the House Committee on Public Service Matters for additional legislative action following the discussion.

Remember that following the controversy surrounding the alleged plan by the former Clerk for the National Assembly (CNA), Sani Omolori, to unilaterally enforce a new condition of service, the Chairman of the National Assembly Service Commission (NASC), Engineer Ahmed Amshi, ordered that the status quo on the 35-year and 60-year-old age groups, whichever comes first, should be maintained.