By Onwa Ekor
Cross River government has unveiled its public service manual and civil service song with a charge on civil servants to see the document as pivotal for progression in service.
Unveiling the 116 pages manual at the state library complex in Calabar, the governor, Prince Bassey Otu, affirmed that it remains a pivotal document for progression in service.
Otu, represented by his deputy, Rt. Hon Peter Odey, said: “Your next promotion as a civil servant lies on your knowledge of this manual, so if you want to pass your next promotion, get a copy, read it and know how to sing the anthem.”
Continuing, the governor advised, “get used to this manual, have it like your Bible, understand it and let it change the way we run the civil service in Cross River.”
He further enjoined the Permanent Secretaries to pass the knowledge to Directors, those under them including the newly employed as the knowledge of the manual would form the basis for promotion.
In a keynote address, entitled, “moving the Cross River State public service to the 21st century: Prospects and challenges,” former Head of the Civil Service of the federation, Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita, listed the challenges in public service to include resistance to change, capacity and skills gaps and infrastructure limitations.
Other challenges she enumerated were, bureaucratic inefficiency and red tape, corruption and inclusivity.
Oyo-Ita reasoned that the path to a 21st century public service remains both promising and demanding, requiring all to harness opportunities while courageously confronting challenges.
According to her, “we must remain focused on building a public service that is citizen centered, technology driven, transparent and responsive,” adding that “we must invest in our people, modernise our systems and foster a culture of innovation and accountability.”
The former Head of the Civil Service of the federation, also remarked that, moving the Cross River public service into the 21st century is not a one-time project but a continuous journey demanding commitment at all levels from leadership to frontline staff, requiring resources, political will and a shared sense of purpose.
Reviewing the manual, Hon Justice Ofem Ofem, disclosed that the book is a comprehensive, well structured and forward looking document that successfully bridges the gap between traditional bureaucratic civil service norms and the contemporary governance challenges particularly with regards to digital transformation and performance management.
He added that the document segmented into four main sections with inclusions of artificial intelligence, sustainable development goals and service contract positions, remain one of the perfect and modest state level civil service guides in Nigeria.
“The manual is intended to make the modern Cross River civil service grounded in the enduring principles of a permanent and professional bureaucracy.
“It meticulously presents technical guidance on office letter writing, endorsement and memoranda as well as embodies critical innovative provision that recognise modern soft tools in service delivery,” Justice Ofem explained.
He also added that the manual takes a proactive stand and recognises the place of artificial intelligence in enhancing service delivery.
Earlier, the State Head of Service, Orok Okon, informed that the educational compilation was conceived in 2014 when Mrs Mary-Theresa Ikwen was the State Head of Service, though it was not printed or circulated.
“Upon my assumption of office, one of the members of the original writing team, now a retired permanent secretary, Emmanuel Eke, brought to my attention the manuscript and I took it to the governor who found it a very good material, approved that we should revise it and bring to present realities and then produce and distribute enough copies, hard and soft for every person that is interested at no cost,” Okon said.
The Head of Service who disclosed that the governor, Prince Bassey Otu, paid fully for the production of the manual, also lauded eminent bureaucrats who constituted the writing team.
The team comprises; John Odu, Okon Okon, Emmanuel Erim, Emmanuel Ojong and Emmanuel Eke.
