Problem Of Staff Recruitment In The Local Government System (A Case Of Ahiazu Mbaise Local Government Area)
Project and Seminar material for Public Administration
Abstract
The study is concerned mainly with the problems of recruitment into the Nigeria civil service and in the same process identifies abuse of Federal character and lack of extensive search for labour government regulation on appointment which affect recruitment in the service.
These problems invariably contributed to the inefficiency and ineffectiveness of the civil service. The method used by the researcher is questionnaire and research interview questions. Meanwhile, the essence of this study is to analyze the problem in the civil service, making a study of Ahiazu Mbaise Local Government Area as a sub-population of the total population of the civil service in the country.
To prove this, the researcher made use of some related literature review on this issue. The researcher tends to free herself from bias which is found quite possible in interview processes by making the research questions to reflect the three (3) categories of workers in the ministries. The senior, intermediate and junior workers.
The interviews were systematically planned and tailored towards getting information about the opinions and attitude of the interviews with reference to the problems of recruitment as it obtained in Ahiazu Mbaise Local Government civil service.
The study revealed that merit was not compromised that it is a criteria of merit as opposed to the superior performance and ability which the Udorji’s reforms stated categorically that merit is not supposed to be a seniority basis. It also stress that ability to merit emphasized were not employed in the system of service in the local government.
In conclusion, the study elucidates that merit in the civil service is not measured in terms of success against defined work objectives, skill, performance, academic qualification.
Table Of Contents
Preliminary Page(s)
- Title page
- Certification
- Dedication
- Acknowledgement
- Abstract
- Table of Contents
Chapter One
1.0 Introduction
- 1.1 Background of the Study
- 1.2 Statement of the problem
- 1.3 Objectives of the Study
- 1.4 Research Question
- 1.5 Significance of the Study
- 1.6 Scope of the Study
- 1.7 Limitation of the Study
- 1.8 Definition of Terms
Chapter Two
2.0 Literature Review
- 2.1 Introduction
- 2.2 Review of other concept of the study
- 2.3 Definition of staff recruitment and problem
- 2.4 Functional approach to staff recruitment
- 2.5 The problem with the Nigerian civil service structure
- 2.6 Recruitment of higher civil service
Chapter Three
3.0 Research Design and Methodology
- 3.1 Introduction
- 3.2 Research Design
- 3.3 Sources / Methods of Data Collection
- 3.4 Population and Sample Size
- 3.5 Sample Technique
- 3.6 Validity and Reliability of Measuring Instrument
- 3.7 Method of Data Analysis
Chapter Four
4.0 Presentation and Analysis of Data
- 4.1 Introduction
- 4.2 Presentation of Data
- 4.3 Analysis of Data
- 4.4 Interpretation of Results
Chapter Five
5.0 Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations
- 5.1 Introduction
- 5.2 Summary of Findings
- 5.3 Conclusion
- 5.4 Recommendations
- References
- Appendix
Chapter One
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background Of The Study
In this study it shall look at an essential arm of the public service “the permanent civil servant” such is the central position on public service, management and because government depend on public wholly on them than any other arm of the efficient execution of the policies and programmes, the public cannot afford to be unconcerned in the type and caliber of persons managing its operating as Akpan rightly reported, “That personnel recruitment imported involves putting the right person in the job.
Also Ajakemo B.C defined “recruitment as a process of seeking and attracting a supply of people from which qualified candidates for job vacancies can be selected. As stipulated on the civil service reform of 1988, it is required that as from 1st April, 1988, each ministry shall have a department of personnel management for the management of their employees. Under this department, there shall exist a personnel management, board to handle the appointment, promotion, transfer and disciple of staff.
The reform also pointed on the issue of the changing of the post of permanent secretary to director general which is a professional post and non-permanent again. Therefore, we shall look at the general system of civil service management with special references to recruitment and result orientation through proper assessment. This paper has to look in to problems in the staff recruitment, strength of work force, government policies as well as cadre of the workers and soon entry into various posts of the service as well as the financial competence of the service with regards to the type of workforce needed.
Having known that the entry and strength of workforce is determined by the head of the civil service through the establishment and posts are the responsibility of the respective departments based on the recent implementation guidelines on the 1988 reform of the service. The actual examination of candidates rest wholly with a constitutionally independent being the civil service commission.
However, this central race of the local government public service commission in the recruitment and discipline of staff will change or is a subject to change when the implementation guideline with respect to civil service structure as continued in president Ibrahim Babangida’s budget speech of December 31, 1988 as implemented. The new policy empowers the various ministries to appeal discipline and promote their own staff and give the public service commission the responsibilities of staff training and man power development, protection civil servants against discrimination and victimization, monitoring as public complaints commission.
In recent years, these problems of unemployment and poor staff recruitment exercise are increasingly receiving world wide consideration from various authors and researchers is partially on the size of the local civil service which has grown beyond the immediate need of the service nor was it related to the economic and financial resources of the local government. These are things this paper has to look upon but before we proceed into that, I will like to have a resume of what the civil servant is all about. The civil servant was defined by Ajakemo B.C as “These servant of the government other than political or judicial office holders who are employed in a civil capacity and whose remuneration is paid out of money provided by the legislature.
An appraisal of the problems confronting the civil service must bear in mind the following points that build up its features and characteristics, despite criticism of the organization, selection and promotion the civil service has claimed exceptional achievement of the impartiality, integrity, anonymity and incompatibility.
Considerable effective policy making power lies with the civil service and any discussion of the defects in the service must not be allowed to hide behind the practice of anonymity and ministerial responsibility and in the existing context of public administration, the civil service must be judged as a management organization and its effectiveness assessed as far as possible on principles which would applied to management organization of the public administration.
Meanwhile, it is the intension of the study to state the requirement propounded by Fulton as regard to recruitment and to know how these guideline is to be followed.
The Fulton committee stated the requirements of the civil servants under modern conditions to be practical judgment and negotiating skill and professionalism.
It is also, the aim of the study to find out why problems exist is staff recruitment pattern in service, the causes and reasons for the persistence.
1.2 Statement Of Problem
The civil service in Nigeria and in most other countries for the machinery through which the government carries out its stated objectives. Civil servant has the general order, rules and regulations guiding it in the pursuit of its goal.
That is, it is a highly bureaucratic organization and one of the means through which government in power tries to legitimize itself and command allegiance from the society also through which government budgets promises and proposals are fulfilled, therefore, society sees civil service as indispensable machinery of the government and as such demands from it, as the society grows more complete so also the burden of the government and in turn, the civil service. Unfortunately, there have been different levels of corrupt practices, leveled against the civil service by the press and some eminent Nigerians.
The civil service has been accused of indulging in dishonesty, nepotism, favouritism, embezzlement and misappropriation of public fund and property.
The rate of moral bribery and abuse of office in general has reached an analyzing and disturbing stage in the local government. That is a matter for regret that most public servants tend to subdue their political life pattern especially in the civil service and the general public. Civil service is expected to give full value for the money spent on it and to ne contented.
1.3 Objectives Of The Study
This study is aimed towards the following objectives:
- To determine the inability of the civil service to place the most qualified personnel in a particular job advertised for.
- To find out the causes of poor system of competitive examination and selection such as unfair and why unopened staff recruitment exercise prevailed in the service.
- To find out whether the strength of workforce entry point and other factors that encourages discrimination and how their militated against proper staff recruitment pattern of the civil service.
- To determine various ways through which government employment policies create problem to recruitment
- To suggest ways to eliminate problems in our staff recruitment exercise or reducing its impacts in civil service.
1.4 Research Questions
Majority of the workers in Ahiazu Mbaise local government civil service were recruited in line with the civil service general order.
- Do civil servants engage in corrupt recruitment practices?
- What are the factors that hamper effectiveness of local government civil service?
- Where does the problem of recruitment prevail most?
- What counts most in recruiting civil servants in Ahiazu Mbaise local government?
1.5 Significance Of The Study
A problem riddling society like ours cannot be given effective and attainment of its objectives becomes practically impossible. This study examines the structural pattern and process of recruitment and suggests its remedy in order words, this study will make people conscious of the societal weaknesses.
The significance of the study also lies in its potentiality of serving as reference tool for both individuals, organizations and government policy makers who desire to eliminate all obstacles militating against the upward mobility of the aspiring majority of manpower into ministerial positions whereby lessening the severity of the manpower shortage.
This study with exposition of the patterns and processes of problems in staff recruitment may help the government to reduce the practice and impact of corruption in recruitment in the civil service and perhaps in the society at large.
The exposition will lead to identification of the weak areas with a view of making the effectiveness of government is to a very great extent determined by the efficiency and competence of the civil service.
1.6 Scope Of The Study
The scope of the study encompasses the structural review of the Ahiazu Mbaise local government civil service in the former British colony of Nigeria bone the stamp of racial basis of recruitment therefore civil service is not a creation of modern times but has its root in history and dates back to the time of ancient civilization.
Having highlighted the scope of the study, the research work is based empirically on the sources. These are the primary source of questionnaires and the interview administered to people and the secondary source of data which include making use of the local government itself or headquarter libraries and other reference works.
1.7 Limitations Of The Study
Most research projects like research work is persistent with certain limitations that always confront students or researchers engaging in research work.
Some of these problems are that of time constraints, finance etc
Time Constraint:
There is always lack of time to carry out thorough study that will be independent and able to stand the test of time. Inadequate time for the respondents to go through the questionnaire thereby done haphazardly.
Problem Of Finance:
The carrying out and the execution of research work that can be immensely valuable is becoming increasingly different, if not impossible when one takes cognizance of costs involves in good research work.
Lack Of Proper Statistical Data:
There is equally the problem of getting the right population size of the study which limits the study.
1.8 Definition Of Terms
Criterion:
This stands for standard of judgment. It could be called a yardstick in this write-up upon which administrators make their decision devoid of impersonal and a political tie.
Government Policies / Regulations:
It stands for rules, laws in the constitution that guide the civil servants in their decision making. It could be related to anything e.g. quota representation.
White Collar Job:
The objectives of white collar job has been used in the write-up, it is a general term taking us beyond the clerk and including other grades such as executive scientists professionals and technical staff.
Office:
This is a place where information is received, sorted, acted upon, filled and passed on.
Generalisis:
Non career civil servants know all before the caliber of people in the civil service and mainly secretary but they are no longer there.
They have given way to specialist and professionalist e.g. changing of the post of permanent secretary (Administrative post) to director general which is professional.
Hierarchy:
This is one of the Max Weber’s idea construct of bureaucracy that maintains merit. There are some other principles such as impersonality achievement legality and specialization that support them.
Chapter Five
5.0 Summary, Conclusion And Recommendations
5.1 Introduction
Based on the analysis made, the researcher observed some of the problem being encountered by the civil service commission.
This study showed the problems of recruitment into the Nigerian civil service as a very sensitive issue both at national, state and local levels. Recruitment has always been associated with Nigerian civil service but because of its sensitive and persistent nature, it sees little or nothing has bee done to eliminate it.
The little attempt supposedly made to expose anomalies in the civil service failed to stand it cut totally.
5.2 Summary Of Findings
The problem of recruitment in the civil service has become an obvious but controversial fact which almost everybody acknowledged but does not know the best way to eradicate it. The civil servants who are the respondents to our interview are also the objects of the alleged corrupt act.
Consequently, there is that lack of co-operation and nonchalant attitude exhibited by the workers, but it is very much hoped that the existence of problem of recruitment in the civil service and its persistence are positional correlated with hierarchical organization of the service.
It was equally observed that the most common problem encountered by the civil service was that lack of clarity and objectivity in the selection pattern which have formed the analysis of problem of recruitment in the Nigerian civil service.
Although problem of recruitment are an obvious phenomenon, it is not easily established in organization. This high is die to official secrecy, sympathy with the perpetrators of the organization may purposely avoid publishing it to protect itself from ridicules.
5.3 Conclusion
Based on the findings, the researcher concluded that problems of recruitment in the Nigeria civil service are highlighted by existing economic cum political structure in the Nigerian political economy.
This could be traced to the organization and structuring of the civil service which undoubtedly facilitated the existence and persistence of problematic recruitment pattern.
Recruitment or appointments to posts in federal, state and local civil service should not be based on tribal considerations.
Any Nigerian, no matter his tribe should be eligible for appointment to any post for which his experience academic attainment and merit principle should be the basis.
Still on the report, it stressed that merits is measured in terms of success against defined work objectives and standards mere academic qualifications do not confer merit, unless backed by performance.
The nation recruitment is built on the fiction of acquisition of a certain degree of knowledge skill and experience within a specified time frame. A ramification of the principle of merit is also found in the Udorji’s report, the public service review commission 1974. Nicknamed Udorji’s report and stated categorically in its main report.
Personnel administration which says that security or land mass is not a criterion for merit unless where it has resulted in superior performance and ability to meet the demands of the new post based on present performance and evidence of potentials.
5.4 Recommendations
The researcher recommends that some of the salient points on the 1988 new reforms that stressed on the problems of structure and the modification of the operational method to reflect the merit system and performance ability as opposed to representation system of the previous patterns.
- The researcher recommends that ability should place above paper qualifications merit is proven to be only criteria for recruitment which the civil service been constantly fluciting from the study so far.
- However, the researcher supports certificate not the basic entry point, this is because some bad people will convince with bad examiners and cheat in examinations.
- For improvement in the problems of recruitment into the Nigerian civil service, government should try to always encourage the guideline on the 1988 reform on the recruitment of personnel functions of the ministry in the local government. The researcher suggests that recruitment exercise should be regular and carried out at least once every year to renounce stagnation most often results to nepotism.
- As the researcher have emphasized before, merits should be the criteria for personnel. Thitherto, workers who advance from one grade to another by examination should be sent for training to enable them master. The job recruited upon enough provision should be made in the yearly estimates for recruiting of all workers without any discrimination.
- Secondly, the researcher believed that familiarity or man-know-man should be curbed; the ministries or the public service commission should be empowered to police the implementation of the policy of federal and local character.
- The researcher found out and recommend that there should be a need for government to specify their goals and objectives for recruitment and appointments. To enforce this, the personnel units should be were or gained so that personnel auditing could be carried out regularly to guide against ghost workers.
- This could be done by restraining the officials of the personnel management to check unnecessary over staffing. Also the economic and financial resources of the local government towards recruitment.
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