Delta civil service at a glance

By Japhet Alakam

The civil service is an organ created to ensure that policies and programmes of any government at any particular time are carried out. They are the engine room of every government and that is why a lot is expected of it.  But there have been a lot of  unethical practices and growing sense of ingratitude in today’s civil service, why is it so, what are the problems and reasons why they are not performing, and what are the possible solutions. These and other issues are what Onose Wilson Odafe, a seasoned career civil servant working with Delta Broadcasting Service, Warri in the Delta State Civil Service put down in his new book entitled, Delta State Civil Service: A Sense of Gratitude.

The author,  who was moved by the unethical practices and the growing sense of ingratitude in today’s civil service in the 73-paged book presents a sincere appraisal on the challenges confronting the Delta State Civil Service and government’s desire for a change in the ways and manner for service delivery for a better society.

The author in the five-chapter work  delved into the historical background of the Delta State Civil Service as being one of the best in the nation with an array of seasoned and world class technocrats, the career paths of many in today’s civil service, the perceived troubles and the future of the state’s civil service. In his opinion, the Delta State Civil Service is today basking in raw youthful energy and talents, especially since the return of democracy and civil administration in 1999. The service has grown from a barely 7,000 personnel to 60, 000 plus strong personnel as at 2013, and making it by far the largest employer of labour in the State.  Yet, this is something that is often taken for granted or hardly appreciate enough by many civil servants, even though it has come at a huge price with its attendant consequences for the State and the Service itself.

Without a doubt, the Delta State Civil Service is still developing and is fraught with infrastructural, capacity and other challenges, be that as it may, it has become expedient that civil servants deliver on the services they are paid for in the face of today’s economic realities and they must be grateful for their careers in the State Civil Service even though it may not be the best of jobs. Civil Servants, however, need to especially be thankful to the last three civilian administrations in the state since 1999 for this feat of job creation and its sustenance; Just as it has become easy for civil servants to be partisan and often time now, openly criticise, even the government of the day that they are meant to serve not being spared of these criticism especially when ‘they’ stand to benefit the other way.

The author drew from his near twenty-year wealth of experience in the private and public sectors as an employee, an observer and a labour researcher to draw up his conclusion and appeal for an attitudinal change for a better civil service delivery that would be beneficial to all, rather than the individual actions and inactions of workers that have caused more harm than good, even to the bad eggs in the system.

This book is a must read for all cadres of civil servants nationwide as well as policy makers, as it touches on the plights of all, and more importantly, how to enjoy work through realistic expectation and wisdom, the strength and role of the trade unions as well as other bodies of aggregated interest we may belong to, as against the now bout of toxic thoughts, conversations and complaints of what is not working, often in isolation of our own shortcomings and negative contributions to making the civil service what it is today, many of which were highlighted in the book.

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