Civil Service Reforms

Question 1

What are reforms?

Answer 1

Reforms are improvements made to existing structures, policies or systems to address shortcomings and enhance effectiveness, efficiency, productivity and accountability

Question 2

What was the major focus of the Tudor Davies reform of 1945

Answer 2

This reform focused on reviewing the wages and salaries and general conditions of service of civil servants

Question 3

The Harragin commission of 1946

Answer 3

This made structural changes by dividing the civil service into two rigid parts. The senior and junior service.

Question 4

The Gorsuch commission of 1954

Answer 4

The also made structural adjustments by reviewing the junior and senior services and recommended that the civil service be broken down into 5 cadres/grades from the lowest post to the highest.

It also recommended that the unitary civil service be split into 4 separate services comprising of the federal and three regional services

Question 5

L.N Mbanefo commission of 1959

Answer 5

This was set up to review the basic rates of salary and wages payable to civil servants all over the country depending on their grades and regions.

Question 6

Adeyinka Morgan Commission of 1963

Answer 6

This was set up to review the wages and salaries of and conditions of service of junior federal civil servants and workers in private establishments.

It introduced for the first time MINIMUM WAGE based on GEOGRAPHICAL basis

It introduced uniformity in the salary of people performing identical roles

Question 7

What was the Elwood grading team about?

Answer 7

The Elwood grading team was birthed by the reports of the Adeyinka Morgan commission and inquired into the inconsistencies in the grading and other conditions relating to posts in the public service with a view to determine the appropriate grading, and achieve unification in the salaries of officers performing identical duties.

The combination of the Adeyinka Morgan and Elwood reports gave the civil service a scheme of service which specified the duty of each post, mode of entry, qualification and promotion requirements.

Question 8

The Dotun Philip reform of 1988 was designed to ensure____

Answer 8

1. Enhanced professionalism
2. Enhanced accountability
3. Enhanced checks and balances
4. Enhanced effectiveness
5. Efficiency and speed of Operation
6. General Modernization
7. Alignment with the presidential system of government
8. Decentralization and delegation
9. Combination of authority with responsibility.

Question 9

What were the important provisions of the Dotun Philip reform of 1988?

Answer 9

1. The office of the Head of Civil service was abolished together with the office of the permanent secretary which was replaced by the Director General appointed by the president who is also expected to vacate the office when the president ends his tenure except the next administration reappoints him.

The ministries were restructured along departmental lines to reflect the basic functions and areas of concern to the ministry. The departments were divided into divisions and the divisions divided into sections

2. The ministers were empowered to undertake the appointment, promotion and discipline of employees in line with the uniform guidelines put in place by the federal civil service commission
3. Each ministry was allowed to have 3 service departments
   a. Department of personnel management
   b. Department of finance and supplies
   c. Department of planning, research and statistics

And not more than 5 operations departments.

Question 10

Why did the Ayida panel come about?

Answer 10

The Ayida panel of 1997 was created in 1994 by Abacha to look into the disastrous impact of the Dotun Philips reform of 1988 which made the effective and dependable civil service break down virtually.

The Ayida panel was to examine the civil service afresh and it’s recommendations were published in a white paper in 1997 by the government.

Question 11

What were the recommendations of the Ayida Panel?

Answer 11

1. Ministeries and Extraministerial departments should be structured based on their objectives, functions and services rather than using a uniform pattern.
2. The minister should no longer be the accounting officer but continue to head the civil service as the chief executive while the DG takes the role of the accounting officer and acts as an adviser to the minister.
3. The title of DG should be reverted to Permanent secretary
4. The post of the perm sec should be a career post and appointment should be made from among the serving senior officers in the civil service on the advice head of civil service.
5. The post of head of service should be restored, with the head appointed from among the permanent secretaries or officers with equivalent ranks.
6. The Ayida panel also recommended that the post of the secretary to the government should be filled from among the senior permanent secretaries but the government rejected this recommendation and stated that it will remain a political appointment to be filled at the discretion of the president.
7. Retirement age in the civil service should be 60 years irrespective of length of service
8. Basic facilities like stationery, typewriters, photocopiers, telephones etc should be made available to enable staff perform their duties efficiently.