The poor conditions under which postal workers operate and deliver services is a major source of concern. Ife Ogunfuwa examines the wretched state of the government agency that has existed for over 165 years

Abandoned furniture littered the space meant to be the reception. Paper and unused office items were packed and placed at different angles. They were all covered in dust in the dimly lit space meant to receive guests. Yet some workers sat in the midst of the chaos while others walked briskly by, not minding the poor condition of the environment.

Mail delivery vehicles in a state of disrepair also littered the compound and the general appearance of the building oozes of poor maintenance as dust covered unused offices windows, and grit littered the large compound of Lafiaji Post Office, Lagos Island in Lagos State.

These unkempt premises and offices are the reflection of most postal offices across the country. From leaking roofs to dirty floors and walls, bushy environment and dilapidated offices, the structures are underutilised and poorly maintained.

In Ajuwon area in Ogun State, the only neat item on the building is the signpost which reads “Ajuwon Post Office”. It was observed that the office building and surroundings had seen better days. The reception had no furniture and no private mailboxes were in sight.

However, based on interactions with NIPOST workers, the willingness to assist customers with necessary information and processing of parcels for delivery was evident.

BACKGROUND OF NIGERIAN POSTAL SERVICE
This government institution was established by the colonial masters in 1852 to provide postal administration and services to the British Postal System. In the beginning, the postal offices across the country provided money order and mail delivery services for the British Colonial masters and operated as an annex of the London General Post Office.

Within the country, mails were delivered by canoes due to a limited number of road networks. By 1906, 27 post offices were operating and by independence in 1960, there were 176 post offices, 10 sub-post offices and 1,000 postal agencies across the country.

Nigeria Postal Service Dept was created in the year NITEL was created –1985. But while NITEL has been privatised, NIPOST still struggles to maintain relevance as its main services have been overtaken by advent of technology used in sending and receiving messages digitally. With emergence of electronic mails, postal services in Nigeria are gradually fading away. Nevertheless, a lot of people still use post offices either to send or to receive, documents, parcels and packages within and outside the country.

Regular customers of NIPOST who spoke with our correspondent attested to affordability and effectiveness of NIPOST’s international courier services that have helped many small scale importers and exporters grow their businesses. However, some of the customers complained it took a longer time to deliver cargo compared with other private courier companies.

Presently, there are postal offices operating in 774 LGAs across the country with more than 20,000 employees, hence its wide coverage.

NO ELECTRICITY SUPPLY IN POST OFFICES IN EKITI
Investigations showed that post offices in some communities in Ekiti State do not enjoy public power supply. Hence, this makes the office environment non-conducive for workers. As a result, workers are unable to use gadgets and digital equipment that require electricity to facilitate their operations.

For instance, it was gathered the Post Office at Ikere Ekiti, situated close to the palace of the Olukere, has been in blackout for about a decade. Although exterior of the facility is neatly painted making it attractive, the inside is a contrast as it spoke the language of neglect with ancient wooden mailboxes and old tables and chairs while the ceiling fan and 21-inch TV in the office are more of decorations.

A source, who explained that the last time the post office had power supply was 2011, said non-availability of electricity was the reason technology was alien to the facility. He said, “There are no computers and other materials for data capture here. If the need for capture arises, they send such people to Ado Ekiti. It is funny because this is a technological age and NIPOST is supposed to grow with it. The only trace of technology in this post office are phones used by staff.

“Wooden boxes are not supposed to be in use again in this age, especially that NIPOST is generating income through sales of stamp duty and other services including transport. Customers still come to send certificates, credentials and other documents through the post office,” the source said.

RAMSHACKLE, UNCOMPLETED POST OFFICE BUILDING IN ADO EKITI
The Post Office in Ado Ekiti, which is the Ado Ekiti District Head Office, located in Oja Oba area, in the heart of Ado Ekiti, is a shadow of its old self. Partial demolition of the erstwhile imposing post office building during the first term of Kayode Fayemi administration to pave way for dualisation of Adunni Olayinka Way, has affected the structure.

Since then, the post office has been disconnected from national grid and has been running on generator to power the remaining part of the building, which members of staff cluster themselves in. As compensation, the Fayemi govt during the first tenure began construction of a storey-building, which got a little above the first floor at the expiration of the administration in 2015 and has remained in that state since.

The head of the facility uses as his office, the uncompleted building without windows and doors, not minding the walls which have not been plastered and the dusty floor. The building does not even have any trace of cables for electricity supply.

A member of staff, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said despite the condition of the post office and daily harrowing experiences of workers, “members of staff are dedicated and are willing to give our best. Quality of our service delivery is okay. People patronise us to some extent for services and are still subscribing to new post office boxes. However, we hope when the Postal Bill is signed (which stipulates everybody that wants to begin business must have a post office box) this will be addressed.”

The member of staff said, “There has been no public power supply here for years since part of the post office was demolished for road project during the 1st tenure of Governor Fayemi about 7 or 8 years ago. The post office is digitalised. We run on generators. We have laptop computers, i-pads and phones, which we use for capturing. We have gadgets though not enough. Other post offices at Iyin Ekiti, Ilawe Ekiti and Ilawe Ekiti refer people to us for capturing.”

Another NIPOST worker, who disclosed plans to automate the counter of Ado Ekiti post office, lamented “such cannot be done now because of the condition of the post office. This place is lacking almost everything because until the building, which construction started many years ago, is completed, there cannot be any proper installation here.

“You need to come here during the rains and see how we struggle with water. Even the uncompleted building, which our boss uses as office leaks from the deck when it rains. We are appealing to all well-meaning people to come to our aid so that this will not be the most derelict post office in any state capital in the country. There is no ideal office situation here. Will you ever believe this is an office for federal workers?

“We also appeal to Governor Fayemi to consider completion of the building which he started during his 1st tenure years back. The governor should also help remove street traders who permanently occupy our gates, thus giving our customers hard times accessing this place.”

WEEDS TAKE OVER NIPOST BUILDINGS IN KWARA
Post Office buildings on which several millions of naira were invested by the FG have been covered by overgrown weeds in several towns and villages in Kwara State. Though Punch investigation in the state revealed that functions being performed by NIPOST, especially in handling of mails have dwindled, it was discovered Post Offices are still functioning in few urban towns including Ilorin, Offa and Omun-Aran in the state.

Checks revealed that construction of NIPOST buildings in Kuntu area in Ilorin metropolis, Omupo, Erin-Ile and other towns and villages in the state embarked upon to uplift postal services by the FG in the 2nd republic during the regime of President Shehu Shagari, had been abandoned and overgrown by weeds. Visits to post office projects in Kuntu, in Ilorin West Local Government Area of the state capital, Omupo and Idofian in Ifelodun council area of the state, revealed the sorry state of buildings already overgrown by weeds.

The projects, with 400 mailboxes to be hired out to members of the public, are in sorry state and are being occupied by bush animals while the one in Ilorin had been turned to defecating place for people living around the area. It was gathered that some community associations, including Offa and Ajase-Ipo, have taken over the buildings located in their domain and made it functional.

Post offices in Ilorin, Offa, Omun-Aran are fully digitalised and are made to perform other services which include registration of students for West African Examinations Council, National Examinations Council, National Business and Technical Examinations Board and Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board examinations apart from the normal postal services.

A woman who refused to give her name but simply identified herself as manager of the Ilorin district of NIPOST told our correspondent at the General Post office, Ilorin that NIPOST had diversified its functions adding “apart engaging in postal services, we are into other services such as marketing, transportation and registration of students for public examinations.

“Kwara is divided into 3 districts: Ilorin, Offa and Omun-Aran. Although, people are still patronising our mailboxes, yet, we have some mailboxes to give out to people. For instance in Ilorin, we have mailboxes in Baba-Oko, Center Igboro and even at General Post office here, which people are yet to hire. We've gone out to enlighten the public on usefulness of our mailboxes and we are appealing to them to come and take the boxes”, she said.

NIPOST REFORM PROGRAMME
Bureau of Public Enterprises had in 2005, initiated reform programmes in the postal agency. BPE sought services of advisers to assist drafting a new national postal sector policy. The advisers were meant to review and develop a new harmonised legal and regulatory framework for the postal sector, to allow for private participation in postal services and restructure the agency.

In 2018, KPMG was appointed as transaction advisory services firm and charged with responsibility of providing advice and support for short-term restructuring of the agency in line with international best practices. Director-General of BPE at the time, Mr Alex Okoh, pledged to see to modernisation and restructuring of NIPOST.

Speaking to our correspondent, President, Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government-owned Companies (SSASCGC), Mr Msheliza Inusa, explained that substandard performance of the agency could be linked to poor funding. According to him, plans to reform the agency had been on for many years but none had been implemented due to lack of funds.

He said postal offices across the country were not making enough money to maintain the offices and there had been no budgetary allocation for many years. “There were plans in place to transform the mail delivery service and introduce new services. The plans were documented but there were no funds for project take off,” he said.

According to Inusa, even though the Postal Reform Bill had not been passed and funds unavailable, the former Post Master General of the Federation, Mr Adebisi Adegbuyi, initiated reforms by creating 7 zones, 108 districts and offices for 36 area postal managers. Inusa said the former post master general before he left office, introduced the digital address system and collaborated with the CBN to develop an electronic stamp to replace the old physical stamps.

He said the plan was to generate enough funds for the agency through electronic stamps to invest in new subsidiaries that had been created. Adegbuyi, when he came to office, actively pushed for the reforms to be implemented.

As part of the reforms, operations of NIPOST would be commercialised and unbundled into 6 profit–driven subsidiaries. These include NIPOST Digital Financial Services Limited (PostBank); NIPOST Property and Development Company Limited; NIPOST Transport and Logistics Limited; NIPOST Merchandising Limited (e-commerce); and NIPOST General Services Support Limited (e-government).

Highlighting some of the challenges being faced by NIPOST, Inusa said,”The private mail boxes are not being paid for by businesses. There are no funds for maintenance of facilities or for payment of electricity bills. The labour leader noted that newly created districts needed vehicles for marketing purposes and funds to pay logistics firms working in partnership with the agency.

According to him, NIPOST is being managed as a social service; as such, the internally generated revenue is too little to cater to important needs of postal offices. “We need 5% of stamp duty fees to maintain NIPOST facilities,” he added.

ABANDONED NIPOST PROJECTS
NIPOST, which currently has 44 out of 162 formally abandoned projects across the country were chosen for the CBN Micro finance projects under the financial inclusion policy of the CBN and its micro Finance company because of its wide reach. Adegbuyi had reportedly told a House of Reps investigative hearing on ‘Abandoned Communications Projects’ that its incomplete corporate headquarters with N800m was at about 28% completion.

He said, “It is a Public Private Partnership arrangement, which is converting all NIPOST supposedly abandoned projects to ongoing ones since they were all chosen to meet the expectations of the CBN financial inclusion policy. And NIPOST abandoned buildings cover all 774 LGAs of the country hence, was used as a major driver for the project to meet needs of Nigerians.”

Presently, there is on ongoing dispute between NIPOST and FIRS over which agency has the right to collect stamp duties on behalf of the govt. NIPOST’s Post-Master General, Dr Ismail Adewusi, recently in Abuja maintained that “our position is that we have more right than any other agency to collect stamp duty; it belongs to us, not any other agency.’’

Adewusi said stamp duty collection remained part of the postal service agency’s core mandate as it was the practice everywhere in the world. As of December last year, management of NIPOST said it had earned N45.8bn from electronic stamp duties.

This is as the FIRS is insisting that it is its duty to oversee stamp duty fee collection as it has always done over other duties and taxes imposed by the FG.

SOURCE (abridged): https://punchng.com/hard-times-hit-postal-services-funding-shrinks-office-buildings-lie-in-ruins/