Will Senate save the postal services?

The Senate last week passed a bill seeking a comprehensive reform of the postal sector through the second reading. Group politics Editor, Taiwo Adisa, examines the bill.

No one needed to be told that the fortunes of the nation’s postal sector has nosedived drastically in recent years. Anyone who passes by the postal offices in the states and the national headquarters of the Nigerian Postal Services (NIPOST) would easily conclude that the buildings and perhaps the staff have seen better days and are gradually becoming relics of the past.

A number of persons in this clime have attributed the dwindling fortunes of the postal services to the advent of mobile phones and the series of Android packages which discourage letter writing. But the fact that postage services are still thriving in the Western world, while locally, private postal service companies still remain buoyant clean off the essence of the argument.

In essence, the problems with the Nigeria’s postal services are not in its stars, they are rather man made. That is the target of the bill for an act to repeal the NIPOST Act CAP N127 LFN 2004 and provide for operation and development of Postal Services and the establishment of the Nigerian Postal Services Commission which passed the second reading in the Senate last week.

The bill, moved by Senator Gilbert Nnaji was first read on October 22, 2015 and it seeks to repeal the existing NIPOST Act and re-enact a new legislation that will establish the Nigerian Postal Services Commission.

According to the Senator, who sets out the lofty goals of the bill in the lead debate he presented, the bill is seeking to establish a regulatory framework for the postal industry in the country with a view to producing a catalyst to encourage local and foreign investment in the postal sector.

According to the senator, the fact that the NIPOST has so far failed to develop a ZIP code for Nigerian cities is a huge minus for communication across the country why also making the citizens a laughing stock in the outside world.

The Senator said that the bill, is seeking wholesale reform of the sector and that rather than propose an amendment, the bill is seeking a total re-enactment of the law to accommodate current realities.

He said: “For more than a century, the Post Office has existed in the country as part of the Post and Telecommunications Department (P&T) before it was split in January 1985 into NITEL and NIPOST. Through the promulgation of Decree No.18 of 1987, NIPOST became an extra-ministerial department. It subsequently became a parastatal with more autonomy and responsibility for the provision of postal and allied services to the public through its existing law, NIPOST Act CapN127 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.”

Nnaji, who is the chairman, Senate committee on Communications, also told the senators while leading the debate that the bill is seeking to establish a regulatory framework for the Nigerian Postal Industry, adding that it will also create an effective, impartial and independent regulatory authority.

According to him, the ill is proposed as a catalyst to encourage local and foreign investment in the Nigerian Postal Industry and adopt the global innovative services in the sector.

He said: “It is not an amendment, but a repeal of the existing NIPOST Act to re-enact a new legislation to cater for the far reaching reforms in the postal industry.”

He also stated that the bill is being proposed as a catalyst to facilitate the reform of the postal industry adding that “It provides for a governing board and a commission to formulate postal industry policy with clear objectives on role of the postal sector in the national economy. The bill provides for the staff of the Commission to be headed by a Director-General in addition to other key personnel.

He listed the objectives of the new law being processed thus:  “It makes financial provisions for the commission, creates power to grant licences, conditions of the licence renewal and revocation.  Sundry powers are also provided for the effective regulation of the industry in addition to the administration of post code system, tariff regulation and maintenance of technical standards.” The senator also said that the bill is seeking to split the current role of NIPOST as both an operator and regulator at the same time adding that “the bill splits up the dual roles of policy maker, independent regulator and industry operator which NIPOST currently enjoys.

“Whereas the NIPOST is to solely retain the role of industry regulator to ensure level playing field, its existing commercial arm would be incorporated as a limited liability company to operate in the industry independent of NIPOST, in addition to other operators. This split would facilitate a radical change in the business culture of the successor company of the commercialised arm of the NIPOST. And this is expected to cause an extensive change in the management of the successor company, injection of investment fund and attraction of the skilled personnel in the industry.”

The senator also stated that the bill provides the framework for the phased liberalisation of the postal market to encourage increased private sector participation as well as service diversification based on pre-defined milestones. He further said: “The bill will make the postal sector commercially viable, and provide a safe and efficient postal service that is sustainable and keeps pace with development in the rest of the world.

“The bill would ensure fair competition in the industry as it seeks to encourage Nigerians to own, control and manage postal organisations. “It offers a basis for the protection of rights and interests of service providers and consumers. And encourage the development of postal manufacturing and supply sector within the Nigerian economy and also encourage effective research and development effort by all postal industry practitioners.”

The Senator stated that the postal sector impacts on the daily lives of the people all over the world, even in the computer age, adding that the sector remains the most accessible means of communication and message/parcel delivery. The postal system IS a sub-key result area for the knowledge-based economy. The extensive network penetration into rural areas and variety of services it can offer makes the postal system a necessary tool for the promotion of social, financial and digital inclusion.

He added that globally the development of product-mix in the postal industry has made it a potent instrument for socio-economic development and transformation adding that the bill will essentially act as a bridge for the digital divide while taking financial services and governance to the grassroots in order to reduce poverty andencourage life-long learning.

The lead debate itself a compendium of all issues revolving around the bill makes an exhaustive overview of the sections and the new law. It gives the contributors less task order than to back the submissions of the presenter and then pass the bill for second reading. For instance, the lead debate submits that over the years the environment has continued to change, requiring the postal industry in the country to equally react appropriately to meet contemporary reality. But the failure to do so has been responsible for the lax in the postal sector.

The Lead debate paper submits: “It is for this reason that the Bill proposes to restructure the postal industry with still relevant contribution to national development.

“The Bill is proposed as a catalyst to facilitate the reform of the postal industry. It provides for a governing Board and a Commission to formulate postal industry policy with clear objectives on role of the postal sector in the national economy.

The Bill provides for the Staff of the Commission to be headed by a Director General in addition to other key personnel. It makes financial provisions for the commission, creates power to grant licences, conditions of the licence renewal and revocation. Sundry powers are also provided for the effective regulation of the industry in addition to the administration of post code system, tariff regulation and maintenance of technical standards.

The debate document indicated that the bill splits up the dual roles of policy maker, independent regulator and industry operator which Lost currently enjoys and which it said promotes its inefficiency.

In the proposed arrangement, the Lost is to solely retain the role of industry regulator to ensure level playing field, its existing commercial arm would be incorporated as a limited liability company to Operate in the industry independent of Neopost addition to other operators.

The split according to the document would facilitate radical changes in the business culture of the successor company of the commercialised arm of the NIPOST and the NIPOST itself.

The Senate had no delay in passing the bill through the second reading last Wednesday. It is hoped that when the bill eventually becomes a law, the nation’s moribund postal sector would receive a reprieve.