The Head of the Federal Civil Service, Dr. Folasade Yemi-Esan, warned on Tuesday that civil servants cannot continue to do things in the old order and expect the service to provide new results.

Yemi-Esan made the above statement in Abuja on Tuesday, when the African Governance Initiative (AIG) formally handed over the Federal Standard Operating Procedure (SOPs) Office of the Head of Civil Service.

She explained that in today’s technological advancement and digital age, the civil service system cannot lag behind or operate in isolation.

She underscored the need for civil servants to embrace new ways of doing things to ensure effective service delivery.

According to her; “We certainly cannot continue to do things in the old order and expect new results. To keep abreast therefore, the Civil Service must continue to be dynamic and innovative,” she said.

“What we are witnessing here today therefore is a clear testament of our resolve to embrace new ways of doing things that promote the delivery of services in an effective and efficient manner, and evolve to a world class service towards the realisation of a new civil service of our dreams.

“It therefore behooves us as custodians of public interest to avail ourselves of opportunities such as the SOPs will present to us to improve our capacities and competencies for enhanced productivity and self- development instead of always depending on support from the system,”.

To enthrench digitalisation and efficient service delivery in the service, Yemi-Esan said her Office in partnership with AIG, has initiated plans to obtain relevant International Organization for Standardization (ISO) certification which is an independent, non- governmental, international organization that develops standards to ensure the quality, safety, and efficiency of products, services, and systems.

She further said her office was also working with SERVICOM to ensure compliance and effective implementation of SOPs across Ministries, Departments and Agencies(MDAs).

Explaining the objectives of SOPs to the civil service, Yemi-Esan said, “the main objective of SOPs is to develop an effective system that complies with industry-specific regulations and standards, to significantly reduce or avoid operational errors as well as unwanted work variations.

“SOPs also ensure the
repeatability and consistency of the performance of any type of process.

“It helps employees to perform complicated tasks: ones in which remembering every detail of a procedure can be difficult or in which a precise sequence of steps is essential.

“It is instructive to note that in view of the importance of the SOP Manuals to the seamless implementation of the Enterprise Content Management Solution (ECMS) and in line with international best practices, the Office decided to take the lead and has gone further to approve the immediate Service-wide development of SOPs starting with four selected MDAs as pilot.

“These MDAs are the Federal Civil Service Commission, Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, State House and the Federal Ministry of Transportation.”

Earlier in his remarks, the Chairman of AIG, Mr. Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, lamented that over the years, Nigerian civil service had not developed SOPs for implementation.

Aig-Imoukhuede stressed the need for digitalisation of the civil service for efficient service delivery, adding that great institutions across the world operate on standards.

He further explained that AIG had partnered the OHCSF in the planning and developing of SOPs, noting that it would entrench continuity and sustainable development in the civil service.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday decried the spate of violence and threats to lives and property that trail party primaries in Nigeria.

While, vowing to henceforth boycott any rancorous primaries of any political parties.

Recall that the electoral umpire is statutorily required to exercise oversight responsibility over the conduct of political party primaries in line with the extant laws but the commission is worried that the conduct of the political parties is constituting serious impediment to the smooth discharge of its mandate.

This was contained in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja by Barrister Festus Okoye, saying, INEC Commissioner and Chairman Information and Voter Education warned the parties that it would not allow them to continue on the part of destructive politics.

The statement read in bits; ” The Commission have watched with utmost dismay and profound concern the recurrent acrimony, violence and destruction of property, including the Commission’s property and equipment, which have characterized some recent political party congresses across the country.

“This is the season of political party congresses and conventions to elect their leaders at various levels of party organization and INEC is mandated by law to monitor them. These meetings constitute a very important aspect of the electoral process and democracy generally in Nigeria.

“The level of violence in some of the Congresses is making it extremely difficult for the Commission to exercise its statutory oversight responsibility enshrined in Sections 85 and 87 of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended). In one such Congress in Kaduna recently, violence broke out leading to the destruction of the Commission’s ballot boxes.”

He insisted that the parties must align themselves with tenets of healthy democratic practice or face the wrath of the law .

“Political parties are reminded that they have a clear obligation to ensure that their Congresses and Conventions are orderly, democratic and in accordance with extant legal framework, their own constitutions and guidelines, as well as INEC’s regulations and guidelines.

“This Commission will not stand askance and watch party conventions and congresses degenerate into farcical rituals and violent fiascos that threaten lives and destroy property.

“For the avoidance of doubt, INEC will henceforth reconsider its involvement in these events, should they continue to put lives of members of the public and staff of the Commission at risk.

The statement continued; “Henceforth, there will be far-reaching consequences in any situation where party congresses and conventions degenerate into violence and destruction of INEC property.

“Apart from replacing such destroyed materials, parties may be blacklisted from the receipt of INEC materials for their activities in the future. The Commission may also withdraw its staff from monitoring such violent political party meetings, with the resultant non-recognition of their outcomes”.

With special reference to the upcoming governorship election in Anambra State, and Council elections in FCT, the commission cautioned that the political parties must stick to the Timetable and schedule of activities released by INEC.

“Parties must stick to the respective Timetable and Schedule of Activities for these elections as released by the Commission, which have been communicated to them and are available at the INEC website (www.inec.gov.ng).

Parties must ensure that their primaries are peaceful and orderly. Above all, they must adhere strictly to the Electoral Act, INEC Regulations and Guidelines, as well as party constitutions and rules, which are domiciled with the Commission.

“In the conduct of their internal processes, political parties must hold themselves to the same standards they hold the Commission during elections namely, openness, fairness, adherence to rules and peaceful conduct.

” INEC remains deeply concerned about the acrimony and violence within parties such that there are now more suits in various courts of law arising from party congresses and primaries than from elections conducted by the Commission. Still, the Commission will continue to work with political parties in support of their internal functioning in order to build strong and democratic parties in Nigeria.”