Minister defends public sector workers

The Minister for Public Sector Reform Dr. Kwesi Nduom has been talking about the urgent need to improve on the conditions of service and work environment for the country’s civil servants, from whom much is expected.

Making a case for efficient and effective service delivery and development, Dr. Nduom explained that there can be no way people will be expecting to receive first class treatment from the civil servants when their work and welfare is not considered important.

Addressing a GIMPA organized development forum at the British Council Hall in Accra, the minister was not happy about how issues relating to the working conditions of civil servants in the country are treated.

“Whether we like it or not, civil servants are some of the most important people in this country. Anyone who wants to do anything in this country, even leading to bills that are placed before parliament, some civil servants did a lot of work for it to get there. If you are a doctor and you need something different, some civil servant did something for that something different to get to you….And yet, we don’t want then to have a comfortable life.”

The minister said that even though civil servants are the least paid in the country, people don’t appreciate the extent of their sacrifice to the state.

“If you go round to talk to people they tell you they sleep all the time; they don’t keep their surroundings clean; they don’t deserve any money… and yet, we demand service; it can’t work. You cant say don’t pay them well; don’t give them good facilities; don’t mind them, and still want to go to the offices and be treated as if you are at Unilever, or you are at Anglo-gold,” he said.

He told the audience at the forum that while his ministry is trying to implement simple measures to make the working environment within the ministries comfortable by clearing all unauthorized structures and restricting movements within the ministries area, the same public is complaining about rights.

“…we are trying to implement what we call Conditions of Work Programme at the ministries areas. We are trying to keep our environment clean; we are trying to keep the environment hospitable with a simple request; that within the ministries, in our offices we must have peaceful environments; that we must ask people to make appointments; and that we must keep appointments. And we don’t want people to be selling eggs from door to door or be selling sheep from office to office. They disrupt our activities.”

Dr. Nduom insisted that nobody would in the name of rights stop them from pursuing what is good for the ministries. The minister also added that they are implementing a number of reform measure’s in order to ensure effective and efficient service delivery to the public. This includes public sector pay reforms to enable civil servants to be motivated enough to work.