Founder of Afe Babalola University Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD) Aare Afe Babalola, SAN has described worrying and dangerous the rising cases of corruption, eye service and indolence in the nation’s civil service.
He, however, advocated the need for increased remuneration of personnel for them to be dedicated and eschew all corrupt practices and tendencies.
The legal icon spoke at the opening ceremony of a two-day training workshop, organised by the University, in collaboration with the Ekiti State Ministry of Capacity Development and Training, titled “Public Policy and Administration”, for officers in the special cadres of the ministry.
According to Babalola, ” Corruption has eaten deep into Nigeria’s civil service. The civil service of today is riddled with corruption, indolence and eye service
” I am a victim myself, and some of my key staff can testify to this.
” It is so bad that if you write an ordinary letter to the minister, you have to do ‘follow-ups’, and I think you understand what I mean by that, without which the letter will not get to its destination, talk more of allowing action to be taken on it.
” Also, if you want anything from the ministry, you have to ‘do something’, for action to be taken.”
The elder statesman noted that civil service in the old western region was formidable, but the current civil servants in many parts of the country, who are meant to be the eyes and ears of the government, had usurped power, and corrupt, before discharging their official duties.
“The civil service was put in place to formulate, implement, evaluate and review government policies and programmes. It was meant to be a channel between the people and the government.
“During the old western region, the civil servants were feared and respected but later when they realized the enormous power they wielded, they virtually usurped power from the government and rendered the leadership powerless.
“This led to corruption, inefficiency, eye service, boot licking and ineptitude creeping into the civil service.
“With the seizure of power from the leadership, it became almost impossible for the people to have access to the governor without bribing their ways through the civil servants who were supposed to be the eyes and the eyes of the governors which unfortunately they never did.”
“Special attention must be paid to the salaries and emoluments of Civil servants, having regard to the parlous state of the nation’s economy.
” As things are today, the monthly take-home of an average civil servant can’t take him to the next bus stop. To make them productive, civil servants must be properly remunerated”, he said.
On his part, the Ekiti State Commissioner for Capacity Development and Training, Professor Patrick Tedela, hailed the founder for partnering with the Ministry to organize the training programme geared towards developing officers in the ministry in a bid to rightly position them for the upcoming endeavours.
The commissioner, represented by his Permanent Secretary, Olaleye Olawale, added that the state government was committed to providing continuous training and development opportunities for public officers, stressing that the training would enhance service delivery in the state civil service.
Earlier, the Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Smaranda Olarinde, represented by Deputy Vice Chancellor of Administration, Professor Olasupo Ijabadeniyi said the workshop would enable the ministry to contribute to the general well-being of the state and country.
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