By Emeka Nze
Chairman of the Public Service Committee, Engr Ebele Okeke, has attributed the cause of red-tapism or slow movement of files in ministries and parastatals to the pervading corruption in the system.
Mrs Okeke whose committee was commended by the conference leadership for a job well-done noted that the slowness of actions in handling of files is caused by corrupt officials who wait to be gratified before working on and releasing files.
She said the civil servants should come to work and work on files without necessarily waiting to be gratified noting that if people work from their hearts there would be nothing like red tapism in the public service.
According to the former Head of Civil Service of the federation, who attributed the success of his committee partly to the effort and level headedness of the deputy chairman and one of the royal fathers in her committee the duo were always helping to calm down some grandstanding members.
She expressed happiness that the recommendation of her committee to be in the exclusive list of the law of the country got the nod of the conference describing minimum wage as the barest minimum of salary that would ensure the survival of any worker.
She wondered why some state governments were playing politics with it and referring to the people as those living below the poverty line and wondered whether anybody in any circumstances would prefer to be poor.
Okeke noted that the suggestion of the sum of N40,000 was made on the floor of the conference and not from the committee and maintained that it was not the function of the committee to recommend the amount but the job of the labour and trade unions to canvas for the amount.
On corruption in the civil service, the chairman was of the opinion that corruption is not only in the civil service but a Nigerian phenomenon adding that it can only be corrected by first starting from the family front through moral teaching by parents to their children.
