Civil Service Restructuring Commission Meet President Kabbah
By Yusuf Alghali

In his effort to transform the national civil service into a 21st century professional and management institution, the President, Alhaji Dr. Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, recently established a special Presidential Commission charged with making recommendations for the restructuring the Senior Civil Service (SCS) cadre.

Addressing the five newly appointed commissioners during an inaugural meeting at the Lodge Thursday, the President hastened to express the importance he attached to the task he had assigned them, as manifested in his personal and direct involvement in the launching of the restructuring process.

While referring to the commission's terms of reference, President Kabbah also noted that commissioners were very carefully selected so that their vast experiences and skills would be brought to bear in the process of addressing problems plaguing the senior civil service. "You are aware of what happened in the past to our civil service," the Head of State said, highlighting political patronage and other negative practices that caused the service to lose its past glory. "We are looking for a complete transformation… don't just limit yourselves to rules and procedures or fear the possibility of upsetting the status quo," he added.

He went on to say that the old practice of emphasising seniority in the assigning of tasks in the civil service work place must be reviewed so that less senior but very competent civil servants could also be encouraged to stay on the job, thus helping to break the cycle of brain drain now affecting the service. "Without a good, first class civil service", the Head of State said, "we cannot be able to build enough wealth to enable us sever our dependence on foreign aid."

He encouraged the commission to be innovative and to build safeguards to ensure an adequate degree of transparency in the implementation of recommendations. He also reiterated that the civil service should be professional and managerial in approach, as these elements would help to restore the confidence and respect Sierra Leoneans used to have in the civil service.

President Kabbah stressed that the new Civil Service must move away from excuses as to why things cannot be done. He argued that civil servants must try to be results-oriented by working towards a situation where they would be innovative in doing things that should be done with available resources within the rules and the law.

However, the President also urged for a speedy restructuring process to ensure a timely reflection of possible recommendations in the national budget proposal for the next year.

Commission Chairman Dr. Sheku Sesay said the commission deeply appreciated the eloquent vision of the Head of State on the restructuring of the Senior Civil Service. "We shall take these words into due consideration as we endeavour to perform the Herculean task set before us," he said, adding that as Commissioners, and as Sierra Leoneans, they were reassured of the nation's political will to implement fully all aspects of reform, including the recommendations expected to be presented within the next few months.

Dr. Sesay pledged his commission's commitment to work "assiduously, transparently, inclusively and diligently to make recommendations and proposals that are practical, realistic and timely to meet the urgent need for restructuring the management levels of the Public Service to create a robust Senior Executive Service."

Other Commissioners present at the inaugural ceremony included Mr. Osho Coker, Mr. David Minah, Dr. Osman Sankoh, Mr. David Sheku. Commissioner Alice Lansana was unavoidably absent