Former Rector of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration Professor Stephen Adei has urged civil servants to undertake capacity-building programmes that will make them relevant in the Civil Service.
The governance expert, who was a panelist on the 4th edition of the Accra Dialogue series held at the premises of TV3, believes that is the only way they can position themselves to be used in prosecuting a new government’s mandate.
Prof. Adei was reacting to accusations by the Civil and Local Government Staff Association, Ghana (CLOGSAG) that government appointees are taking over their work.
READ: CLOGSAG mulls strike over political appointees
He described the accusations of the Association as “an uncivil civil servants’ way of doing things”.
According to Professor Adei, what the aggrieved civil servants need to do is to undergo training as spelt out in the Service’s scheme so they can place themselves strategically to catch eye of the leader of government.
“I think the civil servants who are talking about [government employees taking over their work] must go back to their scheme, build their capacity and then the presidents will find them capable,” he suggested.
He said under his leadership, GIMPA, for instance, made conscious efforts to train civil servants howbeit they seeming not to interested.
“I think the Civil Service is not doing themselves good, especially when provision was made [for them at GIMPA].”
He explained that there “is a certain capacity of the Civil Service that when not there, no matter whether you are NDC or NPP, you will suffer”.
He, however, noted that no presidential or government appointees can ever take over the whole function of the Service; hence, there is the need for a balanced cooperation between the civil servants and government appointees.
In his view, there is an urgent need for the nation to define which positions should be held by government appointees and which should be manned by civil servants to avoid friction.
Prof Adei thinks it is ideal for a minister of state to appoint five experts who would work under the bureaucracy of the Civil Service for as long as the minister stays in office.
‘Significant dislocation’
Prof. Adei’s position contrasted that of a former Chief of Staff, Prosper Douglas Bani, who was also a panelist on the same programme.
According to Mr. Bani, the culture where government appointees are allowed to take over the affairs of the Civil Service creates “significant dislocation in governance”.
READ: Gov’t appointees in civil service dislocates governance – Prosper Bani
The Accra Dialogue (IV) is a Media General’s partnership with the Institute of Law and Public Affairs (ILPA), and Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Foundation (FESF) initiative.
By P.D Wedam|3news.com|Ghana
