Problems Of Civil Service In Nigeria And Possible Solution

There is no doubt about the fact that the Nigerian Civil Service has a great problem. The Civil Service delivers poor services to citizens of this country. There have been lots of reforms, but none of these reforms have been able to make great changes to the poor condition of the civil service. In this article, ‘Problems and Solutions To The Problems of Civil Service In Nigeria’, we want to highlight some problems of Civil Service in Nigeria and their respective solutions.

Problems Of Civil Service In Nigeria And Possible Solutions

1. Poor And Irregular Income

Public Service

One of the problems of Civil Service in Nigeria is the payment of poor and irregular salaries to civil servants. Civil servants in the country are often underpaid and this triggers other problems. The state of income in the public service makes it unattractive to good professionals. Good professionals in the service often figure out that they can earn better in other places, so they leave the civil service or fail to appear regularly at work. Apart from the fact that the salaries paid to civil servants are poor, the government also fails to pay its workers regularly. Irregular payment of salaries often leads to strikes and these strikes often affect the citizens greatly. For instance, when doctors go on strike, lots of innocent lives are lost because of lack of medical attention. Poor and irregular income is a problem that can be easily solved.

  • The solution lies on the shoulders of the government. The government should increase the salaries of civil servants and also commit to paying salaries of civil servants regularly.

2. Poor Attitude To Work

Another problem with the civil service is the poor attitude to work, amongst civil servants. A large percentage of civil servants put up very poor attitude to work. They display the reluctance to work, and this greatly affects the service they render. These civil servants are not motivated to work for a good number of reasons. One of the reasons why civil servants are not motivated to work is that they are not happy with their job. A survey conducted among civil servants showed that most civil servants only work because of money. If given the opportunity, a lot of them will opt in for other jobs they are passionate about. Another thing causing poor attitude to work is the working condition of civil servants. Majority of civil servants work under poor conditions that kill their morale.

  • The solutions to this problem are one, ensuring that only people passionate about a job are recruited into the Nigeria civil service. The other solution is, ensuring that civil servants are placed under good working conditions.

3. Irresponsible Attitudes

A good number of civil servants display attitudes inferring that they have no mandatory service to the people. A lot of them fail to realize that they were employed to serve the people. These civil servants are often hostile to the people.

  • The problem can be solved by the management board of the Nigeria Civil Service. The management board should make a constant reminder of the purpose of employment to civil servants. Civil servants who still decide to remain irresponsible should be punished severely. If after series of punishments, they do not change, such a civil servant should be dismissed from service.

Problems And Solutions To The Problems Of Civil Service In Nigeria

4. Favouritism

It is well-known in the country that getting employed in the civil service is primarily based on favouritism. A person who has no connection is the civil service will find it difficult to get employed. While this has been the situation of employment in the civil service, it remains a bad thing for the service. Favouritism is not only bad for the service, it also deprives an average Nigerian of their right to get employed in the civil service without having to have any connection. The civil is not meant to be occupied by a restricted set of Nigerians. Favouritism also hinders people to be employed based on merit. When people are not employed based on merit, the service will be deprived of the best brains in the country.

  • Solution to this problem, once again, lies to on the shoulders of the Nigeria civil service management board. The civil service management board should ensure that at all levels, employment should be based on merit, not favouritism. Any civil servants who violate this rule should be published.

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5. Lack Of Adequate Training

Dispensing high-quality service requires good knowledge and a great experience. In workplaces, it is the responsibility of employers to train their employees, to bring out the best of their abilities. When an employer trains their employees adequately and regularly, the service provided by the employees will be of good quality. However, refusal to train employees often stagnates the quality of services provided by them, or in the worst case, the quality of services provided drops significantly.

  • The solution to this problem is that government should make it a responsibility to train all civil servants adequately and regularly.

6. Wrong Mindset About The Nigeria Civil Service

A very high percentage of people who are in the civil service have a very poor working mindset. These civil servants believe that the purpose of working in the civil services is to earn money. When this is how they think, the quality of services produced suffers greatly. These people fail to realize that working for the civil service is not about making money. It is primarily about being passionate to serve the citizens of the country.

  • Civil servants should not see it just as an avenue to make money. The government should, from time to time, remind public servants of the kind of mentality they should have about the Nigeria civil service. Works in the civil service should be things people will be happy to carry out. They should be seen as ways to make the country a better place. Furthermore, the government should reward people who work with the right mindset. Punishment should not be inflicted on people who fail to adjust, but the great effort should be made not to recruit such people into the service.

That’s all about Solutions To The Problems Of Civil Service In Nigeria

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