Windhoek
Stubborn civil servants who are not willing to stop using official working hours to attend to private business must leave the public service, Prime Minister Saara Kuungongelwa-Amadhila said yesterday.
She was speaking at a meeting with ministers, public office bearers and permanent secretaries, who convened to find ways to improve coordination and cooperation within government.
“I urge OMAs [offices, ministries and agencies] to take this matter seriously and to use their discretion to determine whether staff members with private business interests are still productive in the public service, or whether they should not rather pursue a business career and resign from the public service,” the PM said.
Government currently forks out over N$23 billion per annum to remunerate over 100 000 civil servants.
The PM’s office has finalised the revision to the declaration of interest requirements for civil servants and she reiterated yesterday that all civil servants would have to seek permission to do remunerative work outside the public service, and will also have to declare, not only their interests in investments and business activities, but also their fixed assets.
“The purpose of this exercise is to protect the interests of the public service by ensuring that staff members and members of the services place their whole time at the disposal of the government,” she said.
Kuugongelwa-Amadhila also said the process would prevent unfair competition between staff members and persons in the private sector and possible conflicts of interest.
She also appealed to all government agencies to take the decentralisation of their functions much more seriously by establishing a greater regional presence through decentralised service delivery outlets.
“The pressure on our capital city is mounting due to increasing migration to Windhoek and that is why we cannot cope with the provision of infrastructure,” she said. “Through decentralisation, people living in the regions have more control over their own lives and they can influence the decisions that affect their daily lives,” she added.
She called on government agencies to prepare their decentralisation plans, which must be executed in consultation with the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development.
With numerous complaints registered over the years regarding the quality of customer service in the public sector, the PM said ministers are required to oversee the development and implementation of Customer Service Charters in all departments and outlets of their respective OMAs that interface with the public.
This, according to her, would improve service delivery, lead to greater job satisfaction for public servants and a higher level of satisfaction among service users, as well as accelerate the transformation of the public service.