Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, has sworn in Yakubu Sani Haidara as the new Head of the Civil Service.
A statement on Friday by the Governor’s spokesperson, Sulaiman Bala Idris, said that Lawal also swore in 12 new permanent secretaries during a ceremony at the Old Chamber of the Government House.
The Governor described the new Head of the Civil Service as a distinguished bureaucrat with outstanding administrative career spanning over three decades.
Lawal said that, “your appointment is in recognition of your capacity and dedication to public service.
“This new role presents an opportunity to deploy your wealth of experience in repositioning the civil service towards greater efficiency, productivity and purposeful service delivery.
“As the Head of Service, you are responsible for driving the current public service reforms initiated by this administration. These reforms aim to build a more effective and responsive system capable of meeting the needs and aspirations of the people of Zamfara State.
“You are entrusted with supervising the permanent secretaries and the entire Civil Service to ensure that government policies and programmes are effectively formulated and implemented.”
The Governor noted that the new permanent secretaries emerged through thorough and transparent process involving an intensive refresher course, written exams, oral interviews, and ICT-based tests, culminating in a professional assessment by the Public Service Institute of Nigeria (PSIN).
“The decision to reform the appointment processes of permanent secretaries in the state is in conformity with current standards of service and best practices and informed by our desire to entrench merit rather than arbitrariness and favouritism as a tool for career advancement in the state Civil Service.
“We believe that to reform the public service which is the central institution of policy formulation and government implementation, competence and professionalism must be the topmost priority.
“Having taken the oath of office as permanent secretaries, you should understand that your roles are critical to the successful implementation of the objectives of our administration.
“I believe that by your proven capacities, you will rise to the occasion with diligence and a sense of responsibility.
“As the accounting officers in your respective ministries and posts, you are expected to align your actions with the six-point agenda of this administration and ensure that every policy and programme under your supervision contribute to the realization of the objectives of our mission of delivering good governance to the people of Zamfara State,” the Governor said.
The statement noted that Lawal equally established office of the Coordinator of Donor Activities and Programmes under the office of the Executive Governor, headed by a Permanent Secretary and reporting directly to the Governor.
“The main role of the Permanent Secretary is coordinating all activities of donor and developmental partners and programmes in conjunction with the implementing MDAs,” the statement said.
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