Public servants urged to be amenable to change
Public servants have been challenged to be innovative and discard the syndrome of “this- is –the- way- we- do things-here.”
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The Chairperson of the Public Services Commission, Mrs Bridget Katsriku, who gave the challenge, said the task would require a critical examination of the systems, processes, rules and regulations as well as the skills that staff employ in the various organisations.
Speaking at this year’s United Nations (UN) /African Union (AU) Public Service Day commemorative colloquium in Accra yesterday, Mrs Katsriku said changing the situation called for discarding archaic ways of doing things which could no longer solve problems, owing to the multifaceted nature and complexity of today’s challenges and the competing demands.
Public Service Day
June 23 every year has been set aside by the UN and the AU for member states to celebrate the Public Service across the world. It is a day for governments and citizens to recognise the important and critical roles which public servants play in ensuring the well-being of society (worldwide).
This year’s celebration was on the theme: “African Charter on Values and Principles of Public Service and Administration: A tool for enhancing governance in open government.”
Challenges
Ghana’s public service is weighed down by obstacles including fragmented operations between and within departments, inadequate infrastructure, resistance to change, lack of critical policy analysis and political and social constraints.
While acknowledging the obstacles that hamper the transformation of the service, Mrs Katsriku said there was high demand from the citizenry for a change for the better.
“Our society is dynamic in nature and solutions of yesteryears may not be capable of adequately fixing today’s or tomorrow’s challenges,” she said.
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Solution
On efforts to overhaul the system and make it more responsive to societal needs, the PSC boss said new reforms including a new performance management regime and a Public Service Corporate Governance Manual had been developed.
Reading the commemoration speech on behalf of the AU Commission, the Minister of State in charge of Public Sector Reform, Alhaji Alhassan Azong, said the celebration created opportunities for AU member states to strengthen co-operation on public sector governance, learn new things in public service delivery and enhance the capacity of bureaucrats.
The Vice-Rector of the Pentecost University, Prof. K.B. Omane-Antwi, who was the guest speaker, made a case for citizens’ participation in governance, saying participatory governance provided citizens with access not only to information but also to decision making.
In a keynote address that centred on the topic: “Innovating governance for sustainable development and well-being of people,” he said the success of governance also depended upon the conduct of public functionaries.