19 February 2008
editorial
Ndola — THE public service is in the spotlight again and sadly it is for wrong reasons and this is its failure to deliver services efficiently.
This is not the first time that there have been complaints about the inertia in the public service and from the look of things, it might not be the last unless there is a radical change.
The statement by Secretary to the Cabinet, Joshua Kanganja, who is the top civil servant, is a serious indictment on the performance of public service workers.
There is poor time management, poor record keeping, negative attitude towards work and a general lethargy that literally grinds progress to halt.
Not many people who have dealt with the Government departments or agencies have kind words about the work culture subsisting in these institutions. Complaints come from everywhere and are about everything.
The attitude and unnecessary bureaucracy are the same whether you want to obtain a passport, driver's licence, national registration card, motor vehicle licence, title deeds, investment licence, payment of terminal benefits, or even reporting a crime and getting treatment at hospitals.
It is, therefore, not surprising that many well-intended projects have made little or no progress and that is why there are situations where large sums are returned to the treasury for want of use.
Nor is it surprising that even the auditor general's report says that officials cannot provide some documents related to financial transactions because of poor record keeping.
The public service has been undergoing reforms and restructuring for over 10 years but there appears to be very little improvement in the manner that they go about handling Government business.
The public expenditure management and financial accountability (PEMFA) project is one of the initiatives introduced by the Government in a bid to improve efficiency and accountability.
The intervention such as total quality management (RQM) principles fall under this project and clearly, this is a sign that the Government is anxious to improve the delivery of service.
It is up to the operatives, who are benefiting from the programmes, to show that they can learn and change in the way they conduct business.
It will be sad if two years down the line, the public will still hear complaints of inertia. Time to change is now.
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