Public Sector Reform Programme

An Open Letter to Paa Kwasi Nduom

The future success of our economy and our ability to achieve the milestones earmarked in the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) and the Ghana Poverty Reduction Programme (GPRP) I & II , depends on having an efficient public or civil administration sector. Fifty years ago at the dawn of our independence, our nation had relatively one of the best public sector organisations in terms of delivery in the whole of Africa. It was not only well organised, structured and well managed, it delivered results. For example the civil administration sector, the public sector we know today, created for us by the colonial government, played a significant role in the rapid economic and infrastructural development experienced between 1909 and 1939, which some describe as the golden period of our economic development. No one could have imagined back then that there would come a day that most of the organisations that now form part of the public sector, Ministries, Departments and Agencies, and local government would rather degenerate into negative entities and become a liability contributing significantly to Ghana?s economic and social decline and stagnation. Look, the public sector in Ghana is huge and its actions affects the lives of every Ghanaian more than any other economic development.

Paa Kwesi, it is in the light of this that I am sending you this letter. Some of us share your governments aspirations, in using the private sector as an engine for economic growth, and we understand that no one can save Ghana but Ghanaians. That is why we wish to set up our own businesses and other initiatives to contribute to Ghana?s economic and social development. We are also doing this because this is the only country we have got and we wish to make a difference and leave a good legacy for our children. Although we know our investments are crucial in this respect we are mindful of the fact that the costs of doing business in Ghana today is unacceptably high due to partly the non performance of the public sector. You know yourself, since you went into business before becoming a Minister, that even to set up a private business one needs to register it, obtain certification, abide by statutory requirements set out in law. Apart from these one also may need to undertake various kinds of developments, perhaps acquire land, construct or purchase premises, and machinery, vehicles and other inputs. In some situations some of these preliminary needs may have to be imported for obvious reasons before one could start operations. All these things that must be done can only be achieved with a fast efficient and prompt service from the public service sector which is responsible for the civil administration of the state. However my experience of the service that is being currently provided by various organisations in the sector, such as for example Customs & Excise, Town Planning Dept, Lands Department, Registrar Generals Dept, AMA, Electricity Corporation, e.t.c, e.t.c?.( I can go on for ever ), is nothing short of appalling. THE EXTRA BUSINESS COSTS that these factors create, the indecisions, the delays, the lack of service delivery, the demands for huge bribes by officers in charge before a service is provided, the very poor procedures and record keeping, are all in fact killing our business initiatives, constraining further growth and damaging the country?s chances of making significant & MEANINGFUL economic progress. The most serious crime in the news concerning Ghanaians now is ?Armed Robbery? how ever people are forgetting that what happens in these institutions is nothing short of ?armed robbery? on a daily basis.

Paa Kwesi you know this is happening all over the place, especially in outfits such as the Passport office, Police Service, Customs & Excise, Immigration Service where the very serious lack of transparency in the recruitment process has led to a situation, where the wrong people with the wrong attitudes are forever being recruited into these services. The result is we are all now faced with a public sector where the employees in certain situations have become a serious liability to the progress of the state and its citizens. For how long are we going to keep deceiving ourselves that we can achieve the MDG goals by 2015 with such a non performing civil administration system.

Paa Kwesi I hope you understand that an important measure of an organisations health is its willingness to create and maintain fairness in everything it does but the dysfunctional public sector we now have is disproportionately also negatively impacting on indigenous Ghanaian entrepreneurs and businessmen, and aspiring businessmen like me, because whilst our efforts are being frustrated by our own countrymen, the Lebanese, Chinese, Indians and even Bosnians are being given an easy ride, though they do not provide us with even a level playing field in their own countries. The result is they are slowly taking over our economy and gradually enslaving our citizens and treating their Ghanaian workers appallingly.. They are doing this with impunity in such a rapid fashion because they do not face the same problems we face. At this stage it is important to state that some of us are now very enlightened and have very high expectations but are being tested to the limit because we cannot take the mediocrity anymore.

I think I speak for many when I say that public service customers have always come across a shocking attitude of open and brazen irresponsibility, lack of customer care and open demands for bribes or else the service will be withheld. For example I do not think it will surprise you to know that even when you are travelling and use the airport, especially Kotoka International Airport, or our borders, Immigration Officers, unashamedly ask you openly without fear for money and gifts. I keep asking myself , who is in charge of these obnoxious people ? No wonder all the questionable characters from, our sub region, Europe and Asia are gaining a foothold in Ghana. What a disgrace !!!! Now you know why I am no longer surprised that notorious and obnoxious drug dealers and smugglers from the West African sub region are now using Ghana as a transhipment point for drugs to Europe and the USA, something they will not dare do in their own countries.

When we find ourselves at the end of such sharp practice which currently permeates the sector, the feeling is just like being robbed by an ?armed robber? whilst the police look on unconcerned. In circumstances like this ones instincts is normally to take a weapon and fight back, and I can tell you I know people who are prepared to fight because they can no longer tolerate public officers being paid and maintained with our tax payers money, being deliberately awkward and treating their fellow citizens like ****.Some of us write these commentaries not because we enjoy doing it , but it is our way of crying for HELP from the powers that be, to do something before a tragedy occurs. I must stress here that the current situation is a threat to our democracy. Many have completely given up but others are contemplating drastic action. However I do not think we need something akin to the notorious ?St Valentines day massacre? in one of the sectors offices, because public officers have been awkward and frustrated a customer so much they could not take it anymore, before we start acting seriously. Look the ? Fama nyame? Syndrome is not an option for some of us. I am a Citizen and even me, a peace loving person when I am treated unfairly in my own Country , I know it and I feel it, and sometimes it affects my sanity.

Paa Kwesi, now that you have been tasked with this reform agenda I am sure you would have a better understanding of why the sector has gone off the rails than me, but, I know a good public service when I see one. Whilst following your progress in the media I understood that one of the issues you constantly referred to is the need to pay decent wages and better benefits to public servants to motivate them to deliver what is required of them. Yes that is also important, but I wish to remind you to keep a crucial distinction in mind here, I think we are not debating what?s truly important and I fear we are going to end up again with no significant changes being made after your exercise has been completed. What I have not heard you mention is the important need to consult the customers, the general public, people like me and the man in the street, who have had terrible experiences with the public sector, to find out the extent of the problems and our possible ideas for solutions. This is very very critical I must stress. You have not also mentioned the need for institutional renewal, staffing issues, especially at the managerial level, because all these public sector organisations now suffer from the same symptoms of bad leadership at the top who do not like taking responsibility for anything that goes wrong in their outfits. I am convinced that most of the managers in place in the sector do not have the necessary competencies to do the jobs required of them. In my observation whilst the sector is collapsing all around them, it appears that all the management team cares for is just to enjoy the titles and perks, parade around in big suits, the latest silk ties , riding in the latest cars at the state?s expense, with messengers and servants at their beck and call, but hardly undertaking any credible oversight actions to ensure that both the people who work under them do the right things at all times, or the systems, procedures and policies in place are strictly adhered to or vigorously implemented. They might go to GIMPA and get additional ?qualifications? or Masters degree in Public Administration, but because they have not had the experience of working in a good system, and I must stress experience of a good public administration system in Ghana, the rot continues and they are unable to make any significant impact on the efficiency of their various outfits which continues to go downhill. Look, our nation blazed the trail in Africa so we the people of Ghana deserve better.

Paa Kwesi the question I have been asking my self and I am sure you probably have been doing the same as well, is ? is it worthwhile having a decent public services sector which delivers good efficient public service??. If we are still going to maintain a public sector because we are convinced that it is a good thing to have, then lets put initiatives in place to ensure it works to our nations benefit not the other way round. If not then lets forget about the whole experiment and let it finally bite the dust to the detriment of all of us.

It is the internal leadership in place that is expected to ensure things happen but, when you go to most of these public organisations today the lack of internal leadership is breathtaking. As a result the employees treat you, the customer as if they are doing you a favour and unless you bribe them with some money or gift, you are not getting the service that they as public servants must provide to you as a matter of right.

Leadership I am sure you know is not only about persuasive and influential skills, or the person who can shout the loudest, it is also about experience and skills therefore it is imperative that we attract candidates with expertise and experience. Whilst our public sector has been consciously and deliberately ran down into the ditch for many years now, there is a huge amount of change going on in public service delivery elsewhere across the world . Ghanaians, well educated and well qualified are chalking successes in these well functioning sectors especially in the developed world. Paa Kwesi I would like to urge you, if you think there are people out there who can do a good job, not the ?bogus foreign consultancies? who just come and squeeze huge amounts of money out of the system and disappear, I am referring especially to the vast pool of highly skilled and knowledgeable Ghanaians with the right attitude, who do not only have the skill but have the experience of working in very good civil administration systems in the developed countries. These skilled and experienced people can even be drafted into senior positions on a short term basis to deal with specific problems. Take a look at these groups of people and headhunt them, draft these experienced managers into senior positions to build up the capacity of our decrepit public sector. Knowledge is now a commodity bought and sold. Trust me it is more valuable than Cocoa or Gold.

We now need fresh thinking and bold new initiatives to put the machinery of government, the public sector, back on the rails so we can achieve the MDG goals by 2015 and the poverty reduction strategy milestones. You know better than me that the knowledge and practice of management is a science that has grown phenomenally, be it in the private or public sectors. Sometimes I ask myself, if our governments can afford to acquire and use the latest most up to date vehicles for their transportation needs, why cant we jump on the side of modern efficient management, tried and tested, and rather continuing to do things, attitudes and actions as if we are still living in the 18th Century. If we do things like this and still want to be part of the globalised world economy, we shall no doubt be taken to the cleaners by those who have their heads screwed on, and there are many ?smart ones? around in our country today.

We need a serious programme, an action plan and serious initiatives to weed out the corrupt and incompetent leadership, the management material in place, who have deliberately created a chaotic situation in the public sector which they are exploiting with impunity. Since their understanding of the concept of management responsibility is different from what me and you think, is it not now necessary to put things right ?. Is it not now time, to device a system where we can be able to flag up all the non performing ones through a rigorous early intervention and inspection system INDEPENDENT from the Civil Service and Ministers ?

For example a division of the Auditor General?s Department can be developed into an INSPECTORATE, to scrutinise the activities of each public sector organisation on a daily basis, regularly carrying out a detailed consideration of the quality of services provided by lets say the passport office, in terms of its managerial leadership, customer care, service delivery, procedures, training of staff, asset management e.t.c. Such an inspectorate in conjunction with representatives of customers who use the service regularly, could force them to come out with weekly, monthly and annual performance plans. They then monitor any targets and measurements imposed by the organisations strategic plan and measure the outcomes to ensure that the outcomes are being met in the areas of for example, accountability, openness, integrity, effectiveness, strengthening of the disciplinary codes to improve standards of behaviour.

The Inspectorate can also be mandated to issue instructions on principles of service delivery arrangements, acceptable structures, Health and Safety as well as risk management. The inspectorate should also be expected to put into place a code of practice that sets out guidance on how the public sector organisations can comply. The basic requirements must force people who are involved in management to take responsibility for their FAILURES. They must have a duty to report to the commission as soon as reasonably practicable any concerns they may have that has been a breach of the law. They must be made to report on all their departments? activities on a quarterly basis to the Audit commission, failure to comply must mean disciplinary action against the top leadership in place they are the cause of all our problems. This way the Minister in charge would also get the best up to date management information to oversee the ministry.

We must also attract talented new people into the public sector and develop approaches that allow us to recruit for attitude and values, drawing from the widest possible pool, bringing bright people in and investing in developing and growing their abilities and skills. Just think of the fact that when we needed an experienced football coach we drafted in somebody with experience and a proven record, the same applies to when we wanted people to ran a half decent airline. There is nothing wrong in doing the same with your public sector reform project.

In areas where you do not have capacity, experienced interim managers can be used to project manage specific tasks over a period of months to enable difficult issues like for example, poor record and information management, to be tackled. Reorganisation of a department or a change in the way an organisation deals with an issue such as customer care approach, or absence management or asset management where there are concerns. A good interim manager will bring a fresh approach, new skills which can enhance performance, morale and establish a good foundation for future performance.

Technology can also play a vital role in this. What sense is there in decisions such as, top civil Servants and public sector organisations using all their budgetary allocations to purchase expensive vehicles for their use in Accra and not thinking of decent phone lines, computers, fax machines, copying machines, printers or spending money to ensure better communications links with their other regional and district offices to facilitate proper and effective civil administration ?

This is our last chance to get it right and I believe in the importance of doing this work with the close co-operation of the customers, the man in the street, whose life has been blighted by all the naked thievery and unethical practices going on in this very important sector of the state. You can do this by arranging public meetings to discuss the issues, or set up focus groups up and down the country to engage people in this exercise. If you can shine the torch on the areas highlighted and perform the task well, it can be the key in turning round our stagnated development and stunted growth. Best Wishes and Good Luck.