My Thoughts On System Failures In The Public Sector-the Case Of The Local Government Service Part Ii

This is a follow up to an earlier article on the same topic published on the 30^th of October, 2015 (Query From My Head Of Service – Evidence Of The System I Am Fighting). In that article, I contended that individuals who are put in positions of trust in most of our public service organisations usually hijack every aspect of the system and virtually act for everybody with little or no consultation at all and sometimes with the believe that they know it all once they are the 'bosses'. This is what I termed “One-man-showmanship”. This phenomenon, in my opinion, is contributing hugely to the system failures in the public sector that we are witnessing today. In this write up, I intend to elaborate some of these points and to give further evidence from the system I find myself on how “One-man-showmanship” is seriously affecting most public sector organisations today.

In the first part of this series, I stated that some of the reasons for this “One-man-showmanship” phenomenon are inexperience, incompetent subordinates and self aggrandizement. I will try to explain each of these reasons with specific examples where appropriate.

INEXPERIENCE: Inexperience in the workings of a system, in my opinion, can lead to glaring ineptitude, incompetence and sometimes serious breach of the law. To cover up for these, people normally adopt all sorts of leadership styles which, in all intent and purposes, can be described as dictatorship. This is also usually facilitated by weak systems. Knowing full well that their actions are less likely to be questioned and if questioned at all, no consequences will arise, such people bulldoze their way through every laid down procedure or process meant to be a check on them. And truly they never get caught and even if caught at all, because of our “Fa ma Nyame” attitude, they still go free. And on Saturday, 7^th November, 2015, I was surprised to hear one of my secret mentors sing that chorus of “Fa Ma Nyame” when the issue of the CHRAJ boss was being discussed on radio. I understood him anyway because he tried explaining his reasons!

In these circumstances, you will only see systems appear to begin to work when you dare challenge the authority of such people or do things that go against their personal and parochial interest. Things people do and see as normal in the system will begin to attract queries as in my case. (Read my article at Query From My Head Of Service – Evidence Of The System I Am Fighting). They will hurriedly do things without any due diligence as in the case of my query, appearance before a disciplinary committee and subsequent interdiction. Yes, as I write I am on interdiction effective 30^th October, 2015 after the botched disciplinary committee sitting, on some charges and at the appropriate time I will react to my Interdiction and the charges therein. I have always said that these moves keep on emboldening me and the more they make those moves the more I become stronger. I am very sure they are meant to intimidate me because when I always sit down to analysis their processes and methods of using these tools, I just can't hold it but laugh. But as I have always said severally, I cannot be intimidated.

I also know of a colleague who is supposed to be on “Indefinite Suspension” and yet when I read all the protocols guiding human resource management in the public sector and Local Government Service, I see no such thing as “Indefinite Suspension” as a penalty for a misconduct.

At my press conference in Tamale on 14^th October, 2015, I stated “I have learnt how the public sector has become what it is today. Victimisation and intimidation has cowed the public servant into diffidence and submissiveness. You will not be sacked but you will be denied your duties for which you were employed because after all those benefiting from such a system do not care about Ghana.” As I write this person who is supposed to be on a so-called “Indefinite Suspension” has not worked for close to five (5) months and has not been investigated for anything but still takes salary at the end of every month. Anything that comes close to this “Indefinite Suspension” which is described in the protocols is “Suspension” and even in such cases the conditions of service for LGS says it shall not exceed ten (10) days (refer to section 45(c)) whiles the Human Resource Operational Manual for LGS produced recently says it shall not exceed fourteen (14) days (refer to section 6.6.3(d)(i)). Isn't this a clear illustration of the point I made at my Press Conference as stated above?

I hope you have also taken note of the contradictions in the number of days for a suspension as contained in the two documents mentioned above. This is just a tip of the iceberg. There are many of such contradictions when you compare the Human Resource Operational Manual (HROM), the Conditions of Service and the Code of Conduct on the same issues. When you move on to compare the HROM for the LGS with the Human Resource Policy Framework and Manual for the Public Sector produced by the Public Services Commission, the contradictions are even worse. These, in my considered opinion, are symptoms of “One-man-showmanship” and “I-know-it-all” syndrome.

INCOMPETENT SUBORDINATES: In my years of service in the public sector especially in the Local Government Service, I have realised that Heads of Institutions generally like working with competent and hardworking subordinates. When assignments or task are giving to subordinates and superiors find that after delivering, the work is not up to standard and they have to always go back and do the whole thing again instead of just making some few inputs, the tendency is to always keep the work to themselves and do it all alone. Here I believe with a proper on-job-training, a superior or a Head need not resort to “One-man-showmanship”. And also I believe these cases are very few in the system.

SELF AGGRANDISEMENT: I must be honest to say that this particular phenomenon only surfaced recently and particularly in the Local Government Service and I believe it is an offshoot of the first reason. It is only of recent that I see a public officer appending his name, academic credentials and positions to documents which even in my opinion, that officer has no authority to produce such documents but only to facilitate the production of such documents. There is no other reason that this can be done if not for personal aggrandisement which I believe is as a results of inexperience in the public sector.

Take a critical examination of the conditions of service for the LGS which was produced in 2007 which I believe is one of the best documents in the service so far. I also know that just a little part of it is practically working or being implemented. There is no name or titles on it and the preamble reads “In the exercise of the powers conferred on the Local Government Service Council, by Act 656 Sec. 32(2), and in consultation with the Local Government Workers Union and senior staff association of the Local Government Service (LGS), and with the approval of the Sector Minister; these Conditions of Service are made...”. The code of Conduct for the Public Services Commission, the Scheme of Service for LGS produced in 2010 and the Human Resource Policy Framework and Manual for the Ghana Public Services bears similar traits to this Condition of Service. This is what I have been talking about.

Now compare this to the Code of Conduct for LGS, the HROM and the 2014 Revised Scheme of Service for LGS. These documents produced recently are completely at variance with what is expected. In all these, the code of conduct for the LGS still goes on to mention Anonymity as one of the canons and the statement of principle for Anonymity says: “Officers and staff of Local Government Service shall serve the State with neutrality and anonymity in the national and local government processes.”As I said in the first part of this series, these documents mentioned above cannot stand the test of time and must be reviewed immediately. I also know that in some jurisdictions, someone should have been answering questions now as to why taxpayers' money was used in this manner.

These things in the public sector where individuals by virtue of the positions they occupy think they are above the law or bigger than the institutions must stop and that is what I stand for. I heard the president talk about similar things recently and I was happy to hear it but what I pray for is that needed actions shall be taken to curtail these things. The talk is now too much!!!

I hope someone is listening! Silence is not an option when things are ill done – Lord Denning!

I will end this one here but I shall surely be back!

Charles Ayuune Akurugu
[email protected]