There is no doubt that holidays induced rest. They are quite useful in reducing stress, anxiety and worries. However, as Edna Ferber succinctly puts it, “perhaps, too much of everything is as bad as too little”. Last week, we discussed the law that established public holidays in Nigeria, which is the Public Holiday Act promulgated 1st January, 1979. Under this Act, the President has the power to declare holidays for the entire nation or any state or part of the country. Governors have the power to declare public holidays in their various states or for any part thereof. The Minister of Internal Affairs has powers to change designated holiday dates when he or she determines it necessary or appropriate to do so. With the above powers given to numerous officials by the Public Holidays Act, it has further deepened the socio-economic problems of the country, as could be seen in the full list of a coterie public holidays in Nigeria catalogued in our last outing. Today, we shall continue with the current list of public holidays in Nigeria. Nigeria has one of the longest lists of public holidays globally.
There have even been recent additions to this long list. The Federal Government of Nigeria recently declared June 12 as the country’s new “Democracy Day”. This was done in recognition of the martyr of Democracy, Chief MKO Abiola, who won the June 12, 1993, election, but was never allowed to govern. Instead, he died in Aso Villa in hazy circumstances. May 29, which was the former democracy day will however still be celebrated in commemoration of the beginning of the second four-year term of a President. Both days have therefore been earmarked as public holidays. I agree with June 12 as Nigeria’s “Democracy Day”. I have fought for this for well over two decades.
The power to declare any other holidays not reflected in the schedule under the Public Holidays Act is conferred on the Honourable Minister of Internal Affairs in section 3, who usually by public notice, is permitted to declare any day a public holiday when it appears to him expedient that a day other than those specifically provided for by the Act be so declared.
Section 4 of the said Act provides that no person shall be compellable to do any act on any day appointed by under the provisions of this Act to be kept as a public holiday which he would not be compellable to do on a Sunday.
Section 5 provides that:
a “if any day appointed as public holiday falls successively on a Friday and a Saturday, only the Friday concerned and no additional day in lieu of that Saturday shall be kept a public holiday.
b “if any day appointed to be a public holiday fall successively on a Saturday and Sunday only the Saturday and Sunday concerned and no additional day in lieu of the Saturday and Sunday shall be kept as public holiday.
c “if two days appointed as public holidays falls successively on a Sunday and a Monday, only the Monday concerned and no additional day in lieu of that Sunday shall be kept as a public holiday.
Wasteful holidays in Nigeria vis-a-vis public holidays observed by other countries of the world
In Nigeria, most unnecessary public holidays declared by the Minister of Internal Affairs on behalf of the federal government of Nigeria as well as the ones declared by state governments are not adequately compensated for by the federal or the state government to cover the loss of those crucial days lost to the Nigerian people and the economy.
Some of these days are usually declared as a day prior to and a day after every general or state election in Nigeria. This includes days when the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria visits any of the 36 states in Nigeria, Boxing day, amongst several other unnecessary holidays.
Origin of wasteful public holidays in Nigeria
Analysts have carefully traced the injection of frivolity into our national life through public holidays to the early 1970s, coinciding with the first oil boom, when the country became awash with oil revenue and the then governments embarked on a mindless spending spree. The governments of the day initiated a pattern of consumption that found expression in luxurious life style for public officials and a lazy import-dependent population. A corollary to this was the love for holidays, as production gave way to simply importing goods and “enjoying” them on paid holidays. Nigerian governments took to awarding generous work-free days, to bribe a growing restless population, just as the quality of public service fell progressively, in lieu of infrastructure, social services, jobs, self-reliance and a productive, diversified economy. Successive governments awarded extra holidays anytime a scheduled public holiday fell on a weekend, at times stretching to three extra days. We took on the garb of the oxymoron of late Professor Claude Ake’s theory that Nigeria operates a “disarticulate economy”, where we produce what we do not consume and consume what we do not produce.
Worried by this trend, the then outgoing Obansanjo’s military junta, in January, 1979, made a law, now codified as the Public Holidays Act, seeking to instill common sense and discernable traction into the public holidays system. The law clearly stipulates that where two days appointed as public holidays fall successively on a Friday and a Saturday, “only the Friday concerned and no additional day in lieu of that Saturday shall be kept as a public holiday.” It further provides that “if any day appointed to be a public holiday falls on a Saturday or a Sunday, “only the Saturday or Sunday concerned and no other day in lieu of either of such days shall be kept as a public holiday.”
As a further step towards minimizing the alarming rate of wasteful holidays in the year and the attendant economic losses, the federal military regime of General Sani Abacha was later forced to make a policy, prohibiting the shifting of holidays that fell on weekends to week days. To erase any ambiguity, the Public holidays Act provides that where two days appointed as public holidays fall successively on a Saturday and a Sunday, only those two days concerned and no additional day or days shall be kept as a public holiday. And where two designated public holidays fall successively on a Sunday and a Monday, “only the Monday concerned and no additional day in lieu of that Sunday shall be kept as a public holiday”.
Evils of wasteful public holidays
If we could be excused for indulging in this silly, wasteful pastime in times past of oil boom and bountiful plenty, we should now be more serious in the midst of recession. The economy, rebased in 2014, briefly made Nigeria Africa’s largest economy at $510 billion. Now, it is barely $300 billion, following the exchange rate crash. In many States, where paying salaries has become a major challenge, some governments, which have even asked their higher academic institutions to fend for themselves, nevertheless, awarded holidays to mark the World Teachers’ Day and another one to mark the start of the Islamic lunar calendar. Some state governors even declare holidays for political reasons. A mere visit by Mr President closes down some States for three days. This is national madness.
Declaring impromptu holidays disrupts business activities and entrenches a regime of waste and Nigeria’s notoriety as an unattractive investment destination. To raise productivity in the wake of its economic slow-down, Portugal, with per capita GDP of $19,122, in 2012, revoked four public holidays. But no one knows how much Nigeria, with $2,758 per capita GDP, loses from its numerous rest days (including Saturdays and Sundays), calculated at about 120 days by Issa Aremu, a veteran labour unionist. But, a report said N138 billion in scheduled treasury bills auctions was lost to impromptu holidays in July this year alone. The US, the world largest economy, does not impose a legal mandate on employers to provide time off.
The task before President Buhari
The task before the Buhari government is the URGENCY OF NOW. It requires utmost seriousness. The leadership should eschew precepts and lead by example. With the economy taking a battering and all aspects of national life in tatters, the message should be that all should roll up their sleeves and get to work to revive the economy, education, health and infrastructure. You don’t foster a sense of urgency by awarding holidays and disrupting the operations of the enterprises that are withstanding the heavy winds of closures. You cannot demonstrate leadership by holidaying outside Nigeria with any and every little excuse.
“Change” as a concept of renewed vigour, should be given real meaning and expression by eschewing frivolous holidays and obeying both the letter and the spirit of the law on public holidays. The country must keep strictly to the statutes by virtue of our history and secular state. We must avoid holidays that are not necessary in growing the economy or contributing to national prosperity.
We cannot necessarily have to imitate other countries that revel in long public holidays. Examples of such countries and number of public holidays are Cambodia (28); Srilanka (25); India and Kazakhstan (21 each); Columbia, the Philipp and Trinidad and Tobago (18 each); China and Hong Kong (17 each); Thailand, Turkey and Pakistan (16 each). However, these countries with a high rate of public holidays has six working days out of the seven days in a week, to cover up for losses occasioned by such public holidays. We cannot afford their luxury of life style. We must act like a country in a hurry to develop – like the Asian Tigers – Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan. Asian Tigritude is simply primarily concerned with producing exports, educating their citizens and minimizing costs of production through cheap, low-skilled labour; government support, less rigid laws and regulations on labour, taxation and pollution, well developed infrastructures such as roads, railways and ports; reduced barriers to international trade and increased technological advancement. Na so I see am.
THE SUN, NIGERIA