Excessive political interference eroding efficiency, productivity in NASS bureaucracy- THE CONCLAVE report

A rash of interference in the internal affairs of the administrative wing of the National Assembly by lawmakers is eroding productivity and efficiency in the National Assembly bureaucracy.

THE CONCLAVE reports that redeployment/posting of staff members, a purely administrative process in the bureaucracy to bolster productivity and efficiency in service delivery is now being egregiously upended by the political wing of the National Assembly.

Lawmakers, as learnt, have thrown the weight of their political influence in reversing the deployment, posting or redeployment of staff members either directly attached to them or those staff member who reach out to them for assistance to reverse management decision.

THE CONCLAVE reports that this development is capable of destroying discipline in the service as well as all-round service, which is the core essence of the bureaucracy.

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Through deployment and redeployment, staff members are taken round the entire gamut exemplified by the different departments/directorates in the National Assembly Service to enable them build capacity and institutional memory.

But by picking and choosing where to stay for longer than necessary, with the help of lawmakers’ influence, the essence of all-round exposure to the overall workings of the NASS bureaucracy is largely rendered impossible, thus discounting the essence of [civil] service.

This is how the scenario that has become a contagion among staff members works: a staff member who does not want to leave his or her duty post for another simply deploys the influence of a lawmaker to get the management to reverse its decision.

Unfortunately, the interference of these lawmakers in the workings of the civil service is alienating and demoralising other staff members who look forward to redeployment as opportunity to serve and to enable them enjoy the benefits of such administrative decisions and processes.

The concern in NASS service just now is that lawmakers’ involvement in the workings of civil service is creating animosity and demotivating hardworking staff members.

The development is also breeding mediocrity and half-baked civil servants in NASS bureaucracy.

Aggrieved staff members whose movements had been affected by their colleagues through influence peddling, are of the opinion that lawmakers should desist from interfering with the working of the civil service.

One of them who is evidently angry said: “They [lawmakers] don’t have any business there [NASS i ternal workings]; they should be concerned about their mandates to deliver democracy dividends to their consituents, and stop meddling in the internal affairs of NASS civil service.”

Another staff member said: “Going forward, the management of the National Assembly, should reel out very stiff penalties for those who seek to reverse their redployment/posting and fail to follow the due process of the service.

“No staff member should approach any lawmaker for any form of posting going forward. The civil service is respected for its discipline and consideration of merit in movement and promotion, hence, these time-tested processes should be respected and sustained.

“No one is indispensable in the civil service; there are one thousand and one competent staff members that can and will always take offices of responsibilities. So, the belief that no one is indispensable should be discouraged.

“A decision by the head of a department to deploy or redeploy staff members who he/she feels are not competent to remain in the positions they occupy should be respected. He knows the staff members better than the lawmakers and where their capacity could be better harnessed for service efficency.”