Tope Fasau, the Special Adviser on Economic Affairs in the Office of the Vice President, has called for the abolition of the traditional 9-to-5 work structure.
On Thursday, Feb. 6, while speaking at a town hall meeting, Mr Fasau argued that shorter working hours could help attract young Nigerians into public service and boost the economy.
“One of the things I’m also proposing is that 9-to-5 is finished. 9-to-5 is dead. Nobody does 9-to-5 work anymore,” Mr Fasau said.
“If you want to encourage the young ones to come into public service, perhaps you should be taking about three hours of work a day.
“You can’t hold their attention for more than three hours. For the rest of the time, let them go. Some of them want to do skits. Some of them want to put a round light in front of them. They’re looking for followers on Instagram. That also adds to the GDP.”
The discussion also centred on the government’s ongoing tax reform efforts. Mr Fasua emphasised the need for citizens to view taxation as a crucial revenue source for national development, citing examples of how advanced economies effectively utilise tax income.
“My advocacy as an economist is that look, we want more stability. If we can employ Nigerians more—more Nigerians to have, you know, regular income—it will work for this country,” he added.
The event was attended by policymakers, including Senator Babajide Omoworare, who underscored the importance of public discourse in the legislative process.
“So, I always welcome the opportunity like this to have a discourse on bills and enactments at whatever stage. It’s either that [a bill] has been passed, or that it has been assented to, or not. The theme of this one is thinking of taxes in a new way. The aim is to bring together experts in the tax ecosystem,” Mr Omoworare said.