26 April, 2011
UNITED KINGDOM
Fire Brigade sets up as business
A Fire Brigade in the north of England is planning to leave the Public Service and set itself up as a private business.
   The Brigade, in Cleveland is facing an £8.9 million ($A13.7 million) funding gap over the next four years but believes that if it becomes an employee-owned mutual it would be able to get new work from the private sector and so become financially self-sufficient.
   Chief Fire Officer, Ian Hayton said the brigade wanted to protect the services it delivered and safeguard the communities it protected.
   “There’s been doom and gloom for 12 months about the cuts that are coming but what we have been trying to do with this was stop that victim culture, roll our sleeves up and do something about it.
   The organisation has a real buzz about it now,” The Brigade has got the go-ahead this month from the Government to present its proposals, including finalising a business plan and a structure,” Mr Hayton said.
   “If all goes well, it will transfer out of the public sector before the next General Election.”
   He said that in advance of the move, the Brigade had already set up a trading arm and was about to announce a “very large” contract to deliver risk management services to a local industry.
   The Government is on the record as saying it wanted to see a wave of new employee mutuals or co-operatives delivering public services.
   Minister for the Cabinet Office, Francis Maude has predicted that as many as a million public sector workers – or up to one in six of the workforce – could transfer to mutuals by 2015.
   This will pave the way, he claimed, for more innovative and efficient delivery of public services.


26 April, 2011
IVORY COAST
Staff slow to return to work
Public Service staff in the Ivory Coast have been slow to return to work following the overthrow of former President Laurent Gbagbo.
   New President, Alassane Ouattara’s Minister for Civil Service was himself late for work, while elsewhere in the main city of Abidjan Government employees complained of looted office equipment and rotting bodies in the street.
   President Ouattara, a former International Monetary Fund official and long-time Opposition figure, took charge on 11 April.
   On that day a few people waited in front of the Post and Telecommunications building which remained closed despite President Ouattara’s call for Public Servants to “imperatively” get back to work.
   Minister for Civil Service, Konan Gnamien, who arrived at his Ministry at around 9:30am, said his convoy had been delayed.
   “I came to simply assess what is to be done and see what urgent issues need to be put in place so that work can begin quickly,” Mr Gnamien said.
   A Public Servant at the Parliament building said when he arrived at work “there was a decomposing body” at the building’s entrance.
   “Looters have stolen all the computers, they’ve turned everything upside down,” the worker said, asking not to be named.
   “I don’t know if we’ll be able to get back to work for two or three months.”
   Mr Gbagbo - who spent a decade in power - had refused to accept defeat in November’s presidential vote, provoking a violent stand-off even though the United Nations and the bulk of the international community had recognised President Ouattara’s victory.
   The ex-President is now under house arrest.


26 April, 2011
MALDIVES
Four choices in VR packages
An incentive package to encourage Public Servants in the Maldives to resign and join the private sector or take on further eduction has been approved by Cabinet.
   Under the scheme, PS staff and other Government employees will be eligible for one of four retirement incentive packages.
   In addition, employees above the age of 55 who retire voluntarily will be given the same benefits as those who reach the mandatory retirement age of 65.
   The move is expected to be welcomed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which was also pleased with the floating of the rufiyaa and passage of several Tax Bills through Parliament, including the Tourism Goods and Services Tax and the Business Profit Tax.
   Under the new voluntary redundancy scheme the four packages are a one time payment of Rf 150,000 (A$10,870) for staff to leave; a payment of Rf 150,000 and priority in the small and medium enterprises loan scheme for those 18-50 years of age; a lump sum of Rf 200,000 (A$14,500) and priority in Government training and scholarship programs for those 18-40 years of age; or no assistance at all.
   The IMF has regarded the country’s public wage bill as the key contributor to its 21 per cent Budget deficit, demanding it reduce its expenditure as well as increase revenue.
   The deficit was worsened by a 400 per cent increase in the Government’s wage bill between 2004 and 2009, with tremendous growth between 2007 and 2009.
   Head of the Civil Service Commission (CSC), Mohamed Fahmy said the Commission was “very positive” about the voluntary redundancy program.
   “This is an opportunity, particularly for young people, to advance their studies and skills,” he said.
   “We can’t yet say how people will react, but definitely the package for people 55 years and over is very good.
   “I think this is positive encouragement – scholarships are hard to come by and many parents are not in a position to fund their children’s education.”
   Press Secretary to the President, Mohamed Zuhair claimed that the potential short term costs of the scheme were not relatively high compared to the benefits in the long term.
   “We need to trim down the Civil Service to reduce State expenditure and have a healthier private sector,” Mr Zuhair said.
   “I don’t think this will start a massive brain drain.
   “The Civil Service will continue to provide benefits such as long term security and upward mobility.
   “I don’t think there will be a rush,” he said.


26 April, 2011
SOUTH AFRICA
Move to toughen PS penalties
South Africa’s Public Service Commission (PSC) has called for a crackdown on official corruption, finding that corrupt Public Servants were often dealt with leniently.
   In a report, Profiling and Analysis of the Most Common Manifestations of Corruption and its Related Risks in the Public Service, the PSC found that Departments took more than 60 days to finalise disciplinary inquiries even in minor offences.
   “This is too costly for Government as the officials are being suspended from duty with full pay,” the PSC said in a statement.
   It said that according to law, a disciplinary process should not take longer than 60 days.
   “Departments are often lenient in imposing disciplinary sanctions against officials found guilty of fraud and corruption,” it said.
   “It is common to find written or final written warning to officials found guilty of fraud and corruption.”
   It found the most common forms of corruption were fraud and bribery (1,511 cases), mismanagement of Government funds (870), procurement irregularities (720) and appointment irregularities (627).
   The PSC said the Government needed to improve its prevention, detection and investigation of corruption cases.
   “The PSC found that the areas of utmost concern to Departments are those where officials can use their discretion to decide whether or not to investigate cases of alleged corruption,” the statement said.
   “In this regard, the officials tend to request the closure of cases even before these have been investigated.”
   It also found that only 40 per cent of the Departments it investigated had anti-corruption policies in place and there was evidence that those which had them did not implement them.


26 April, 2011
UNITED KINGDOM
Review call into pension changes
Public Servants in the United Kingdom are seeking a judicial review of the changes made to their pension entitlements, labelling them “unacceptable.”
   The review will challenge the Government’s decision to switch to the Consumer Price Index when up-rating pensions rather than the Retail Price Index.
   Unions claim the change will take £60 ($A92) a year off the average pension, but over the longer term the cumulative effect could be much higher.
   The Teachers’ union, NASUWT, estimates that a teacher with an annual pension of £10,000 ($A15,300) could lose £74,000 ($A113,000) over 25 years.
   General Secretary of the union for senior Public Servants the FDA (Association of First Division Civil Servants), Jonathan Baume said the Government’s decision – announced in the 2010 Budget - to change the index was wholly unacceptable and potentially illegal.
   He said it would come on top of an across-the-board pay freeze for FDA members and proposed increases to members’ contributions to pension schemes.
   Mr Baume said the challenge had brought together organisations representing millions of public sector workers and those already in retirement.
   Signatories to the legal challenge include the Civil Service Pensioners’ Alliance, Prospect, the Police Federation, the National Association of Retired Police Officers and the GMB.
   The unions’ challenge is based on legal advice that in choosing the CPI index, the Secretary of State had not acted within his legal authority in adopting a measure of inflation that was, at least in part, directed towards changes in consumer behaviour rather than changes in prices
   The advice further said that the law required him to have regard only to increases in the general level of prices.


26 April, 2011
NEW ZEALAND
Public prosecutors in cost wrangle
Public prosecution services in New Zealand are to be reviewed in a bid to save money.
   Attorney-General, Chris Finlayson said financial pressures led to the move as the services cost about $NZ75 million ($A55.4 million) a year.
   Mr Finlayson said the independent review would be comprehensive and would examine the organisational structures, governance, and accountability of Agencies within the prosecution system, as well as their roles, functions, and processes.
   He said the latest move was part of sweeping reforms of the justice system being carried out by the Government.
   Eligibility for legal aid has already been tightened up and the Minister for Justice, Simon Power has revealed that the Family Court is also to be scrutinised in the coming months.
   Mr Power said recent reviews of the justice system had focused on criminal procedure, victims and legal aid.
   “It’s important that prosecutions are subject to the same level of scrutiny as other parts of the justice system to ensure their overall effectiveness and efficiency,” Mr Power said.
   “The aim of the review is to achieve a public prosecution service that both manages costs and upholds high standards.”
   Minister for Police, Judith Collins said most offences were prosecuted by the police or Crown solicitors, through funding from Crown Law.
   “The Government spends at least $75 million a year on prosecutions so it’s important we ensure taxpayers are receiving a high-quality and cost-effective service,” Ms Collins said.


26 April, 2011
BANGLADESH
New law to govern PS
A draft law governing the staffing and conditions of employment in the Bangladesh Public Service has been released for public comment.
   Minister for Finance, A.M.A. Muhith said major reforms in public administration had become necessary.
   “The draft Civil Service Act has been prepared and is in the process of finalisation by holding discussions, workshops and exchange of views with different stakeholders,” Mr Muhith said.
   He said although the Constitution provided for the enactment of a law to regulate appointments and conditions of service in the PS, successive Governments had shown no interest in enacting such a law, preferring instead to make and unmake rules by executive orders.
   The draft law says the current members of the present Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) shall constitute the proposed Bangladesh Civil Service.
   The service will be made up of three tiers – superior, senior and junior.
   The superior tier will include posts involved in policy formulation, the senior tier will carry out implementation of policy decisions and the junior tier will provide necessary assistance to the seniors.
   The posts in different grades of the three tiers will be filled by direct recruitment or promotion, or both, except for 10 per cent of the posts in the senior level being reserved for Presidential appointment.
   The draft law proposes retirement of Public Servants at 59.
   Mr Muhith said certain factors such as the increasing average life-span, need for utilising experience, and the retirement age of the Public Servants in neighbouring countries have been used as a guide.


26 April, 2011
NIGERIA
Political activism punished
More than 1,000 Public Servants in the Nigerian State of Ekiti have been suspended for becoming too involved in the recent national elections.
   A lobby group in the State, the Ekiti Positive Forum (EPF), has alleged that the PS staff were being victimised for voting for President Goodluck Jonathan in the election.
   In a statement signed by the Group’s chairman, Chief David Oke and Secretary, Gbenga Adekunle, the EFP claimed that the Public Servants had been issued with suspension letters over two days.
   “It is worrisome that a Government that was installed through the instrument of the rule of law is now victimising workers because they were suspected to have voted for the Peoples Democratic Party [President Jonathan’s party],” the statement said.
   The EPF urged traditional rulers and other citizens to prevail on the State Government “to desist from victimising Public Servants, who were only carrying out their civic responsibilities as prescribed by the laws of the country.”
   State Commissioner for Information, Communication, Civic Orientation and Strategy, Fola Richie-Adewusi said the workers called to account by the State Government were those who worked as political party agents during the election.
   Mrs Richie-Adewusi said the suspended workers flouted an order of the State Government that no Public Servant must play politics overtly, adding that the number of affected workers was not readily available.
   According to the Commissioner, the disciplinary action affected all politically active staff in the Public Service, irrespective of their political affiliation, adding that it would also be a deterrent to others.


26 April, 2011
UNITED KINGDOM
Call for services to go online
A consultant’s report for the UK Public Service has recommended that more services be delivered online.
   Accounting company Deloitte cited the Department of Revenue and Custom’s online self-assessment program and the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency’s car tax applications as good examples of online services but it said there were many more opportunities for using the web instead of costlier postal, telephone and face-to-face contacts.
   The company’s study claimed the public sector had to open up new online channels, and should restrict more expensive options to those in need.
   It said change to e-governance should not be viewed as an ‘IT project’ and should be considered as part of a program portfolio.
   Director for Public Service at Deloitte, Joel Bellman said over the past decade the UK public sector had often treated digital services as an add-on to traditional paper, telephone or face-to-face contact rather than a replacement for it.
   He said only a fraction of the potential cost savings had been achieved.
   In a separate survey, the move towards more online services in Local Government also found favour.
   In a poll of 1,000 members of the public undertaken by research company Capita, 40 per cent of respondents said IT could improve local services by enabling more to be provided online.
   Capita also found that four out of five people in the country did not care who provided local authority IT services as long as the quality was good.
   More than two-thirds (68 per cent) of respondents believed that, given the financial pressures on local authorities, more effective use of IT could help save their Council money.


26 April, 2011
IRELAND
Public Servants in Ireland could be called on to work longer hours to avoid more pay cuts, the Labour Relations Commission has suggested.
   The Commission said public services could be provided more efficiently and the Government must look at some of its services with a view to abolishing them.
   Meanwhile, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin said he hoped there would not be any further pay cuts in the Public Service.

BOTSWANA
The legality of the 10-day Public Service strike is to be challenged in the courts.
   The Government is claiming that Government workers are violating an agreement to ensure essential medical and other services don’t suffer during the strike for higher wages.
   It says that a minimum number of workers are supposed to stay on the job at hospitals, schools and other Government facilities and this is not happening.

NORTHERN IRELAND
Claims that Government officials interfered in the work of the Police Ombudsman are to be investigated by a former senior Public Servant.
   Chairman of the Community Relations Council, Tony McCusker, who retired from the Public Service in August 2005, will conduct the review into the allegations made against Department of Justice Public Servants.
   The review follows the shock resignation of Chief Executive of the Ombudsman, Sam Pollock who was also allegedly the victim of false allegations after voicing his concerns.

BRUNEI
A briefing on the good practices of handling gifts in the Public Service has been told that corruption is an enemy of the State.
   Assistant District Officer at Tutong, Abdul Ghani bin Hj Othman highlighted the problem while saying efforts to contain such corruption from penetrating the public sector had been made.,
   Positive policies had been introduced including management tools such as a client’s charter, which had been implemented to quicken action in dealing with corruption in both the public and private sectors.

INDIA
India’s leading Public Servants have spent Civil Service Day discussing transparency and ethics in governance.
   The discussions came after head of the ruling Congress Party, Sonia Gandhi outlined a four-point agenda to fight corruption that included fast-tracking corruption cases.
   A background paper for the conference proposed possible steps to promote ethical conduct.


19 April, 2011
UNITED KINGDOM
PS pensions to be outsourced
The British Public Service pension scheme is to be outsourced to a new employee-owned mutual company and a private sector partner.
   The move, which establishes the MyCSP scheme, has been described as the biggest spin-out from of a Central Government service giving employees the opportunity to take a stake in their business.
   Under the proposal, the Government, employees and a private sector partner would all have an interest in the pension scheme while the potential for offering a stake to scheme members is also being considered.
   The new model enables the Government to move beyond simply outsourcing or running the scheme in-house.
   Cabinet Secretary, Francis Maude said the Government was looking for more innovative ways to structure services.
   “We know that employees who have a stake in their business, or take ownership of it completely, have more power and motivation to improve the service they run,” Mr Maude said.
   “They can also benefit from partnerships with private or voluntary sector organisations which can bring in capital and expertise.
   “For the private sector, which can no longer expect the generous margins of the past, tapping the talent of frontline staff to improve efficiency will be a priority.”
   Mr Maude praised the MyCSP team for putting the proposal together.
   Chief Executive of My Civil Service Pension, Phil Bartlett said MyCSP was the first pension administration service to pioneer an innovative mutual joint venture between the Government, employees and a new private sector partner.
   “By taking the opportunity to mutualise we can better acknowledge our people and their expertise,” Mr Bartlett said, “and access valuable additional resources and expertise in the private sector.”


19 April, 2011
SWAZILAND
Paid holidays for unwanted staff
Workers at the Department of Customs and Excise and Income Tax, who cannot be found jobs under a PS restructuring, have had their compulsory leave extended.
   The staff will be paid their full salaries while the Government decides what to do with them.
   A total of 198 employees could not be employed by the newly established Swaziland Revenue Authority (SRA).
   Principal Secretary at the Finance Department, Khabonina Mabuza told them that the Government was still working on the transition and while that was being concluded, they would receive their monthly salaries as well as overtime allowances.
   It is expected that some will be redeployed to other Government Ministries while others will be sent home for good. The workers have been on special leave since January.
   Some of the workers did not receive letters extending their leave but Ms Mabuza said they should not panic.
   She said it was normal for errors to happen while the letters were being printed and that the workers should not worry as that would be corrected.
   Meanwhile, there were mixed feelings among those who received the letters and those who did not.
   Some feel the Government was spending a lot of money on people who were not doing any work, saying this was an abuse of taxpayers’ money.
   “I am fine with the arrangement as long as I’m going to receive my salary every month end,” one of them said.
   “This means Government has a lot of money. How can they afford to pay us for doing nothing?”
   The worker said the comments should not be taken as a complaint.
   “Government must do what is best for everyone.”


19 April, 2011
KENYA
PS wins health fund coverage
Public Servants in Kenya are to get a new deal on medical cover which is expected to begin on 1 July.
   Under the plan, the minimum cover for lower grades of Public Servants and members of the uniformed forces will be set at Sh500,000 ($A5,700) a year. The maximum for the top cadre is Sh2 million ($A22,800).
   The scheme will open the doors of some of the country’s top-of-the-range hospitals to State employees.
   PS staff likely to benefit from the scheme will include police and members of the General Service Unit.
   Teachers who are currently opposed to joining the scheme and losing their monthly medical allowances, may still benefit.
   According to the Ministry of Public Service, there were some parties to the scheme who were yet to sign with disagreements surrounding the limitation to two children of members as opposed to four the Public Service unions were fighting for.
   Advantages the PS staff could expect from scheme would include coverage for their family members who would only have to pay Sh200 ($A2.25) under the co-pay arrangement, and send an SMS from their cell phones to the scheme administrator.
   This is meant to verify the member’s status and give a reference number, which the medical provider or hospital the member would use to claim payment for the service.
   The deal negotiated between unions led by the Kenya Civil Servants Union, and the Ministry, headed by Dalmas Otieno, is expected to change the life of Public Servants who have been struggling to survive on low salaries made even more difficult by lack of medical schemes.


19 April, 2011
NEW ZEALAND
PS efficiencies to save $230M
Sharing and streamlining administrative and support functions in the New Zealand Public Service could save the Government $230 million a year according to the Minister for Finance, Bill English.
   One possibility is that staff may have less individual space in their offices.
   Commenting on the results of a Treasury benchmarking report, Mr English said the Government was committed to moving resources from the back office to the frontline so services to taxpayers could be improved with little or no new money over the next few years.
   “The report shows that in many instances the cost of functions like property management, human resources, finance and ICT in New Zealand is higher than international benchmarks,” Mr English said.
   “For example, the average office space per person in our Public Service is about 21 square metres compared with best practice in some New Zealand Agencies of about 15 square metres.
   “This is one of many areas where we believe there is room for improvement.”
   In an initial response to the report, the Government was setting up a property management centre of expertise based in the Ministry of Social Development.
   This new Office would help PS agencies manage their property needs better.
   “Officials estimate that better property management across the State sector could eventually save over $50 million a year,” Mr English said.
   “This work sits alongside a range of initiatives focused on moving resources to frontline public services in areas like health, education and law and order,” he said.


19 April, 2011
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Pay deal stalls
A wages and conditions agreement between the Papua New Guinea Government and the union representing Public Servants is stalled over housing allowances.
   A pay rise of 7.5 per cent each year for three years has been agreed but the PNG Public Employees Union (PEU) is not budging over the allowances question.
   President of the PEU, Michael Malabag, said union representatives went to what should have been the signing ceremony, but requested that it be postponed when the contents of the Memorandum of Understanding were revealed.
   “One of the very contentious issues that we have been trying to negotiate has been the increase of the housing allowance,” Mr Malabag said.
   “Since 1982 Public Servants have been getting about $A1.50 to $A2. That’s not going to buy much housing.”
   He said he had written to the Secretary of the Department of Personal Management, John Kali saying the union was not satisfied with the arrangement
   “All I want is 250 kina ($A95) for a housing allowance for 14,000 of our membership who qualify, we want it over and done with,” he said
   “The Government is ready to sign – and they want to sign right away, but we are not going to do it until we get satisfaction over the outstanding issues.”
   Mr Malabag said he wanted a concrete response from the Government that it was ready to negotiate on the housing issue before he put pen to paper.
   “Then it can be signed and delivered - it can be signed at any time before the end of this week,” he said.


19 April, 2011
UNITED KINGDOM
Attitude change needed for diversity
Targets for diversity in senior management by 2013 reveal there is a lot of work ahead for the UK Public Service.
   According to goals set by the Public Service, 39 per cent of senior Public Service posts should be held by women in 2013 - up from 35.6 per cent in September 2010.
   In the same year five per cent of senior PS posts should be held by minority ethnic staff and five per cent by disabled people.
   But according to research, increasing the diversity of senior public leaders will require a big shift in attitudes among headhunters and recruitment firms putting forward candidates for senior roles, as well as among appointment panels making those appointments.
   A study of Local Government has shown that staff in the top Council jobs are overwhelmingly white, and mostly male.
   The City of London, with 33 boroughs and a population that is 31 per cent from a black or minority ethnic background, has only one chief executive from that background.
   A recent review of police leadership by former Chief Constable, Peter Neyroud highlighted similar findings - the police remain dominated by an overwhelmingly white male culture.
   Chief Executive of Basildon Borough Council, Bala Mahendran - one of the few from an ethnic background - said that while women had made great strides in redressing the management diversity imbalance, the number of people from ethic groups reaching senior positions was actually going backwards in relative terms.
   Chief Executive of recruitment specialist Green Park, Raj Tulsiani said the old-fashioned view that the talent simply wasn’t out there did not wash any more.
   “In the vast majority of areas, the appointable talent does exist,” Mr Tulsiani said.
   He said there was an institutional bias across the executive recruitment industry that needed to be challenged, so that public bodies could build up their senior management tiers to reflect a wider talent pool.


19 April, 2011
NORTHERN IRELAND
Chief resigns citing interference
The Chief Executive of Northern Ireland’s Police Ombudsman’s Office has resigned, claiming the Office’s independence had been undermined by meddling from senior Public Servants at the Department of Justice.
   The Chief Executive, Sam Pollock claimed was subjected to malicious personal attacks after raising concerns over the alleged interference.
   The Department of Justice said it had always respected the Office’s independence.
   Ombudsman, Al Hutchinson also strongly rejected claims the Office’s independence had been undermined.
   Mr Hutchinson said the independence of the Ombudsman was “guaranteed by law” and he could confirm that “independence is both real and practical, as demonstrated by our reports”.
   The Department of Justice said that proper arrangements were in place to meet the accountability arrangements for public money.
   It said if there was evidence to suggest any official had behaved improperly that would be looked into fully, but no such evidence had been presented.
   Mr Pollock was at Mr Hutchinson’s side in February, when the Ombudsman published his second, revised report into the murders of 15 people in McGurk’s bar in 1971.
   However, he wrote to the Ombudsman three weeks ago announcing that he had decided to resign - and made clear that he was unhappy with the way the Office was being run.
   It is understood Mr Pollock’s letter contained strong criticism of the relationship between the Ombudsman’s Office and the police and senior Public Servants since Mr Hutchinson took over the job almost three-and-a half years ago.
   Mr Pollock has been chief executive since the Office opened more than 10 years ago. He will leave at the end of August.


19 April, 2011
KENYA
Jobs safe following tribal probe
A Parliamentary Committee is urging that no Government employees lose their jobs because of a survey showing the dominance of certain tribe-members in Kenyan Ministries and State Corporations.
   Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Equal Opportunities, Mohamed Affey put the position after meeting with officials from the National Cohesion and Integration Commission.
   Mr Affey said it would be wrong to victimise the Public Servants because of their tribal backgrounds.
   His comments followed reports of anxiety among PS staff over whether they might face the sack when the Government moved to correct the imbalance.
   According to the survey, members of the Kikuyu, Kalenjin, Luhya, Kamba and Luo communities occupied 70 per cent of all Public Service jobs.
   A number of smaller tribes were at the tail end of the survey, with more than 20 having less than one per cent of their population in the PS. Seven tribes have less than 100 members.
   The Committee intends summoning the Minister for Public Service, Dalmas Otieno and Head of Public Service, Francis Muthaura to explain the skewed ethnic representation.
   Mr Affey said Local Government, Higher Education, Public Works and Tourism Ministers would also be summonsed to explain why their Departments did not have the ethnic balance required by law.
   “The leaders of these institutions will appear before us to shed more light and see whether following this report by the Commission there are measures that need to take in order to correct the position,” Mr Affey said.
   He said however that any initiatives to come from the Committee’s work should not include sacking existing Public Servants.


19 April, 2011
MALAYSIA (SABAH)
PS urged to be creative
Sabah State Public Servants have been urged to think out of the box when delivering good service to their customers.
   Minister for Community Development and Consumer Affairs, Datuk Hajah Azizah Mohd Dun said officers should not be content with their achievements but should instead be creative and innovative to seek better ways to serve their target groups.
   Datuk Azizah said human interaction was important as the Ministry was people-oriented.
   “We must always reflect on ourselves, there must be space to improve our abilities, our service and to give good service to our target group,” Datuk Azizah said.
   She also encouraged officers to adopt lifelong learning as well as to learn from successful figures in the effort to improve themselves.
   Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary of Community Development and Consumer Affairs, Datuk Asnimar Sukardi, said 74 programs and activities involving the Ministry were underway.
   Activities encompass poverty eradication, consumer education, women development, monitoring and auditing social assistance, new approaches in drug prevention and service delivery.
   Datuk Asnimar said the Department was involved in supporting the Government Transformation Plan (GTP) which placed emphasis on poverty eradication.
   “The program provides opportunities for heads and members of households to work in order to free themselves of poverty, as well as to give them the necessary exposure and training before they enter the workforce,” Datuk Asnimar said.


19 April, 2011
NEW ZEALAND
Plans to cut New Zealand’s legal aid bill have been criticised by the Law Society which says lawyers should be paid more for taking on the cases.
   Instead the Public Defence Service, (PDS) which provides in-house advice by salaried lawyers, will be expanded and administered by the Justice Department, saving around $73 million over four years.
   The PDS will now take on 50 per cent of criminal legal aid cases. Other changes include: fixed prices for certain cases; a user charge of $100 for family and civil cases; narrowing the criteria for legal aid in family cases and introducing income testing for less serious criminal cases.

CANADA
Conservative politicians have promised not to make deep cuts to the Public Service if they are re-elected at the 2 May Federal election.
   However, they said they would seek to trim $4 billion annually in Federal program spending.
   Instead, savings will be made through efficiencies and by not replacing Public Servants as they retired.

UNITED KINGDOM
A national strike likely in June could involve more than 250,000 British Public Servants protesting against job cuts, a pay freeze and reform of pensions.
   The Public and Commercial Services Union’s National Executive unanimously backed plans for the strike, which would be the largest industrial action taken since the Conservative-led Government took power last May.
   If ratified by the union’s annual conference starting on May 18, a ballot would be held the following week and the first strike might take place the following month.

TAIWAN
Salaries for Taiwan’s Public Servants and teachers would be raised three per cent if the Legislature passes the proposal.
   The pay raises may be given in July but are still contingent on a series of factors, including Taiwan’s economic growth and tax revenues, and also whether the private sector was giving raises.
   The Finance Ministry said that tax revenues from the first quarter of this year rose 4.9 per cent to 14.6 billion Taiwan dollars ($A500 million) from the same period of last year boosting the chance of a pay rise.

CHINA
A five-year plan to improve training for Public Servants has been announced.
   Newly-appointed officials must receive training relevant to their position within a year before their probationary period ends.
   Local Governments in the country’s eastern regions will help train 100,000 Public Servants working in areas of central and western China over the next five years.


12 April, 2011
KENYA
PS jobs divided by tribes
A study by Kenya’s National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) has found that tribalism is alive and well in the nation’s Public Service with the Kikuyu and Kalenjin tribes dominating.
   The NCIC’s report said the two communities together controlled 40 per cent of the Public Service.
   The Cohesion Act, enacted in 2008, required that no Government Department or Ministry should have more than 33 per cent of its staff from one ethnic community.
   Chair of NCIC, Mzalendo Kibunjia attributed the skewed dominance to political patronage during the terms of Presidents Jomo Kenyatta, Daniel arap Moi and Mwai Kibaki.
   “Their number in the Civil Service suggests a direct relationship with the tenure of the Presidencies, in that both had a member as President for over 20 years,” his report stated.
   “This study indicts the personality-based leadership in Kenya and signals the need to strengthen institutions that check the creeping effects of political patronage,” Mr Kibunjia said.
   Other reasons cited for the imbalance included disparities in access to education, proximity to the location of Government offices as well as willingness to seek employment in the Public Service.
   “Be that as it may, it is remarkable that a service once dominated by Europeans and Asians has so dramatically changed its composition over 40 years. The merging patterns of staffing suggest that power and leadership influenced the ethnic composition of the Public Service,” the report said.
   “The Kikuyu constitute the largest single dominant ethnic group in all Ministries and Departments, except Prisons, Police and the office of the Prime Minister. The Kalenjin are the most dominant group in the Prisons and the Police Service.”


12 April, 2011
IRELAND
Outsiders to choose top officials
Major changes to the way leading Public Servants are appointed in Ireland will give control of the selection process to non-Public Servants.
   Under proposals by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin five of the eight members of the Top Level Appointments Commission will be from outside the Public Service and one of those will be the Chair. Currently, only one member is external.
   A spokeswoman for Mr Howlin said he would bring forward proposals on the external members of the Commission to a future Cabinet meeting.
   The Croke Park Agreement for reforming the Public Service said that in order to ensure a high-performing, high-productivity Public Service, “appropriately skilled personnel” from outside the PS would have to be recruited.
   Since 2007, people outside the Public Service had been allowed to apply for the top positions in Government Departments and Agencies – Secretary General and Assistant Secretary General – but on a limited basis.
   Since then around 300 external candidates have applied for positions and only one was won appointment and that person was a former Public Servant.
   In a statement, Mr Howlin said the new Commission would make extra efforts to attract external candidates for top jobs.
   “It is essential the right people capable of taking on the complex challenges our country faces now, and in the future, are in place,” Mr Howlin said.


12 April, 2011
UNITED KINGDOM
Longer hours a health hazard
A survey of more than 7,000 British Public Servants has found that working long hours can kill you.
   The study found that those who regularly worked 11 hours a day or more were 67 per cent more likely to develop coronary heart disease than those who worked seven to eight hours a day on average.
   The researchers who conducted the study could not say whether work stress caused heart disease or whether it was a marker for other risks. Neither could they say whether working less would prevent heart disease.
   The researchers made 10-year risk analyses, measuring the risk of heart disease using lifestyle factors that included smoking, cholesterol levels and blood pressure.
   When they added stress at work into the analysis for boosting the chances of heart disease, they were able to predict more accurately who might have a heart attack or be at risk for dying from a coronary event.
   The study included 7,095 Public Service workers, male and female, between the ages of 39 and 62.
   All were free of heart disease at the start of the study that began in 1991 and continued to 1993. Screening was conducted every five years until 2004.
   The study is not the first to show stress was bad for cardiovascular health. A January 2011 study in the European Heart Journal showed that just living near noise could increase the chances of stroke.


12 April, 2011
BOTSWANA
Strike to close borders
Border posts are to be targeted in a public sector strike expected to paralyse services during the Easter holidays.
   The strike is set to begin on the 18 April and end on the 29th.
   Publicity Secretary of the Botswana Federation of Public Sector Unions (BOFEPUSU), Goretetse Kekgonegile said the main targets were the Ramokgwebana, Ramatlabama, Tlokweng and Martin’s Drift border posts.
   “We want to withdraw labour from all the border posts,” Mr Kekgonegile said.
   “This will impact negatively on the Government as there will be no people arriving or leaving the country.”
   After the 10-day strike, union leaders are to discuss the way forward and if the employer did not bring any offer, they were likely to embark on a go-slow.
   Secretary General of BOFEPUSU, Andrew Motsamai said during the 48 hours notice to go on industrial action the unions, the employers, and a mediator would meet to discuss the rules and conduct of the strike, issues of essential services and skeleton staff.
   “Should the employer engage security agents to fire rubber bullets at us, we will be ready,” Mr Motsamai said.
   “The industrial action will be so massive, Botswana will never be the same again.” National negotiator of the Botswana Secondary Schools Teachers Union, Tobokani Nicholas Rari said it was important for workers to realise the employer could apply the no-work-no-pay principle for the days that workers were on a strike.
   “This is legal, however we need to sacrifice in order to be part of this historic event,” Mr Rari said.


12 April, 2011
UNITED KINGDOM
PS bonus payments defended
Public Service bonuses have been defended by the new Permanent Secretary at the Home Office.
   Dame Helen Ghosh suggested that performance bonuses of £10,000 ($A15,600) were not much of a reward.
   Dame Helen’s comments were in response to questions from the Home Affairs Select Committee of Parliament specifically relating to the new head of the UK Border Agency.
   The position was vacated a few months ago by Lin Homer and her successor could get a bonus of up to £17,000 ($A26,500) if certain performance targets were met.
   Dame Helen said it was vital that such an important job had the right person in place.
   “We have tried to pitch the salary at something which is reasonable, fits with Government policy on salaries but is likely to attract somebody,” she said.
   The bonus pool at the Home Office had gone down from £773,000 ($A1.2 million) last year to roughly £300,000 ($A468,000) and about 25 per cent of the staff of the Department would get bonuses compared with the previous 60 per cent.
   In addition, she said, most Public Servants had experienced a pay freeze and the most senior staff had waived their bonuses for the past two years. Dame Helen said bonuses paid to Home Office Public Servants were not large when compared to the private sector.
   “The average wasn’t exactly big bucks,” she said.
   “The average was, I think…the very maximum for the highest earners was £10,000.”
   Chair of the Committee, Keith Vaz said that could be seen by some as a lot of money, but Dame Helen said she was simply drawing the analogy with the private sector.


12 April, 2011
NEW ZEALAND
TVNZ closes down TV station
The New Zealand national broadcaster is to close down one of its television channels after the Government declined to fund it.
   TVNZ 7, available on the Freeview digital platform and Sky TV, will stop broadcasting in June 2012.
   Chief Executive of Television New Zealand, Rick Ellis said he asked the Government for renewed funding for the channel, but this was turned down.
   About 20 to 30 positions could be jeopardised, though he hoped many of the staff would be placed elsewhere in TVNZ.
   The Opposition Labour Party said the loss of TVNZ 7 meant Maori Television would be the only channel with a public service focus.
   Minister for Broadcasting, Jonathan Coleman said the Government’s new stance on funding of public service television was that it would fund content, rather than channels.
   The Government would still support New Zealand-made shows through the contestable NZ On Air pool.
   “Sinking money into a public broadcasting infrastructure which continues to suck up money in the long-term doesn’t make sense,” Dr Coleman said.
   “It’s important to fund the content, not some monolithic public broadcaster.”
   The decision means that Television New Zealand’s foray into non-commercial public service channels is effectively over.
   The previous Government introduced the TVNZ charter and digital channels TVNZ6 and TVNZ7 with a public service focus, but the present Government turned TVNZ6 into a commercial channel and is in the process of axing the charter.
   TVNZ7 costs about $15 million a year to run.


12 April, 2011
NIGERIA
Pension Commission denies fraud
Public Servants at the National Pension Commission (PenCom) have been cleared of involvement in a N12 billion ($A500,000) fraud.
   Head of the Communications Unit at PenCom, Emeka Onuora said the fraud was committed by staff of the Civil Service Pensions Department in the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation.
   Mr Onuora said the fraud pointed to problems with the old pensions system, which was fraught with irregularities.
   These problems had led to non-payment of benefits to pensioners under the scheme, and relevant Government Agencies were already handling the charges brought against the officers that defrauded the Commission.
   “PenCom has nothing to do with the fraud,” he said.
   “There is no fraud whatsoever in PenCom because we follow due process and abide by the highest standards in carrying out our work.”
   Mr Onuora said under the new system, pension funds are not left with the employers, but are credited directly to the individual’s retirement saving accounts, and the employer, the Commission or even the pension fund administrator have no access to the money.”
   Another problem was that the old scheme was administered by six Pension Departments – the Civil Service Pension Department, the Military Pension Department, Police Pension Department, Custom, Immigration and Prison Department, Security Agencies and Federal Capital Pension Department.
   Under these arrangements there was much greater opportunity for fraud.


12 April, 2011
LIBERIA
Workshops to shake-up PS
Reforms to the Public Service in Liberia are being considered at a series of workshops in Congo Town.
   The reforms, long overdue following stagnation in the years of civil war, will involve the restructuring and ‘right-sizing’ of Ministries, Agencies and Commissions of Government.
   Head of Directorate at the Civil Service Agency, Oblayon Blayon Nyemah said the restructuring and right-sizing were the first elements in the Civil Service Reform Strategy.
   “It is the entry point which lays the foundation for further reforms,” Mr Nyemah said.
   “It also seeks to clearly define and streamline the Government so that it focuses on policy-making, regulation, and guidance-giving.
   “We want to encourage active partnerships with non-governmental actors to undertake functions they are best prepared to undertake.”
   He said the major foundation to be laid down was to critically review and analyse the strategic plan, as suggestions and inputs would help in enhancing the work of consultants.
   Mr Nyemah suggested a significant number of workers might be separated from the Public Service as a result of redundancy, reassignment, retrenchment or retraining.
   “The Government wants to minimise their plight, if not eliminate the social problems associated with people who could fall into this category,” he said.
   “The redirected workers’ program strategy will provide alternative employment or subsistence support programs such as micro-finance, business management skills, jobs search skills, entrepreneur skills training and psycho-social counselling.”
   The first workshop was attended by senior Government officials, three members each of the Internal Reform Committee and Ministries of Agriculture, Public Works, Commerce, Labor and the Civil Service Agency.


12 April, 2011
IRELAND
PS numbers slump
New reports are expected to show that the number employed in the Public Service has fallen by between four and five thousand.
   This is expected to result in payroll savings of more than €200 million ($A273 million).
   Departments have been asked to pinpoint the savings generated and costs avoided, and reform targets which have been met for the period up to the end of March.
   In its Budget last December, the then Government said it wanted to see savings in the Public Service pay and pensions bill of €309 million ($A421 million) this year.
   It also said that it wanted to see staffing numbers fall by 7,000 to 301,000 by the end of 2011.
   The new Government has not said publicly whether it has officially adopted the targets set by its predecessor.
   However, indications of the Government’s thinking are likely to emerge later this month when it is scheduled to prepare a report for the European Union and International Monetary Fund on employment levels and trends in the Public Service.
   Senior figures involved in the implementation of the deal are confident that the target of €309 million is achievable this year.
   The Health Service, which accounts for about one-third of all Public Service staff, is on course to generate about €100 million ($A136.5 million) in savings.
   The elimination of 2,000 jobs under the recent voluntary redundancy/early retirement program will save €56 million ($A76 million).


12 April, 2011
And From the World in Brief...
ZIMBABWE
Low-paid Public Servants will get a pay-rise by June, President Robert Mugabe has promised
   Workers now receiving $128 a month would receive at least $251.
   However, the increase would bring them only to half the poverty line of $502 and would still be a disgrace, he said, blaming Western sanctions for the low level of salaries.

UNITED STATES
A television network, MSNBC, has posted an online collection of stories examining how public sector workers are dealing with what has become an increasingly hostile climate.
   The articles depict real public workers who are struggling because of efforts by politicians, pundits and corporations to vilify and scapegoat them in pursuit of a right-wing agenda.
   Visitors to MSNBC.com have been asked to read the stories and then vote on the question: “Do you think the cost-cutting aimed at public union workers has been fair?”

AZERBAIJAN
Training courses on ethical behaviour and human resource management for Public Servants are being held by the Azerbaijan State Civil Service Commission.
   The courses are arranged regularly in order to improve the quality and professionalism of Public Servants.
   They are organised jointly with United Nations Development Programme and have been conducted since 2007.

UNITED STATES (Hawaii)
An agreement has been reached between the State’s largest public employee union and the governor to cut workers’ pay by five per cent.
   In return the State has agreed to avoid compulsory holidays or lay-offs.
   The deal is expected to save the State about $US65 million (about the same in Australian dollars) for the next financial year and $US59 million the following year.

SOUTH AFRICA
Public Servants are not doing the public a favour by providing them with services, President Jacob Zuma said
   “The Constitution of the Republic states that everyone has the right to have access to health care services... it is their right and not a privilege that can be taken away by Government, Public Servants or any other institution in society,” President Zuma said in an address to a nurses conference.
   “Citizens should not be treated as if they are a burden or a nuisance by staff employed to serve them.”


5 April, 2011
NEW ZEALAND
Union critical of PS cuts
Proposed cuts to services and the New Zealand Public Service have been criticised by PS unions who have warned the Government to expect a fight.
   Minister for Finance, Bill English has announced that some public services, which he dubbed “nice-to-haves,” were likely to be cut as the Government reduced spending.
   “Something has to give and that has to be lower-value activities the Government is currently funding,” Mr English said.
   “This is not a time when we can afford to indulge in a whole lot of nice-to-haves even though, for sections of the population, they feel the loss of those services or funding streams.”
   He did not say which areas would be cut or merged apart from indicating that some family benefits at the “top end” were likely to be a casualty.
   National Secretary of the Public Service Association, Brenda Pilott said the Public Service had already lost 2,000 jobs in two years, and it was clear there was going to be a lot more restructuring.
   “We’re now at a tipping point” Ms Pilott said.
   “Public sector workers have been working longer and harder with fewer resources for some time.
   “Despite the extra hours and efforts on their part, the shortfall eventually impacts on services.”
   She said the cuts so far had gone under the radar of most New Zealanders, but the country was moving into a phase when they were going to be felt in the community.
   Spokesman on State Services for the Opposition Labour Party, Ruth Dyson said the Government claimed backroom functions were being cut to fund frontline services.
   “The reality is they are simply cutting services in order to cover for their failure to get the economy growing,” Ms Dyson said.
   Figures issued by the Minister for State Services, Tony Ryall showed there were 36,973 people working in core Government administration at the end of last year, a reduction of 1,886 or five per cent, on the 38,859 positions at the end of 2008.
   The 2008 figure had been set as the cap for numbers across the Public Service except for the Corrections Department’s Prison and Probation Services, Work and Income, and Child, Youth and Family.
   The numbers in those Departments had risen by 778 since 2008.
   Police and the Defence Force were also excluded from the cap.


5 April, 2011
PHILIPPINES
Public search for top PS staff
Nominations have closed for the Philippines’ annual Search for Outstanding Public Officials and Employees.
   According to the Civil Service Commission, Public Servants had already been nominated in for three award categories - Lingkod Bayan, Pag-asa, and Dangal ng Bayan.
   In a statement, the CSC said the Lingkod Bayan was conferred on an individual or group for extraordinary contributions resulting from an idea or performance which had nationwide impact on public interest, security and patrimony.
   The Pag-asa prize was given to an individual or group for outstanding contributions resulting from an idea or performance which directly benefitted more than one Department of Government and the Dangal ng Bayan award was bestowed on a person in recognition of performance of an extraordinary act or public service and consistent demonstration of exemplary ethical behaviour on the basis of observance of the eight norms of behaviour.
   Nominees must be in Government service at the time of the nomination. Posthumous nominations are allowed, provided that the nominees died while still actively working for the State.
   The nominees should also have obtained at least a ‘Very Satisfactory’ rating or its equivalent in the last two performance evaluation periods and have never been found guilty of an administrative or criminal offence involving moral turpitude.
   A group may be nominated even if it included members who failed to meet the qualifications in detail but they would be excluded from receiving the award should the team be chosen as a recipient.


5 April, 2011
NIGERIA
IT skills compulsory for PS recruits
New recruits to the Nigerian Public Service will need to be experienced or qualified in ICT from now on according to the Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission, Ambassador Ahmed Al-Gazali.
   Ambassador Ahmed Al-Gazali said the Commission proposed to establish an IT faculty at the Civil Service Training Institute in Abuja modelled on the lines of facilities in China, India, South Korea, South Africa and Ghana to ensure this happened.
   He said to comply with the Head of Service’s Circular of 17 March, the Commission had already begun an e-learning scheme.
   “It is being run in collaboration with Microsoft, NIIT and Oracle 290 and staff from G3 to G10 will be passing out from the course on Basic Intermediate and Advanced Computer for Offices,” Ambassador Al-Gazali said.
   Commenting on the issue of a promotion round for the directorate cadre, Mr Al-Gazali said that President Goodluck Jonathan had ruled that there should be a review of the annual performance evaluation report form and the process of the adoption and or adaptation of the performance contract.
   “This will mean we have to host an interactive forum of all stakeholders in public and private sectors with a view to positioning the Civil Service towards attaining the Vision 20:2020 targets in which we hope to bring it to world class standards,” Mr Al-Gazali said.
   Head of Service, Professor Oladapo Afolabi, described Ambassador Al-Gazali as a father and urged the continued co-operation of the Commission and Public Servants to achieve the set objectives.


5 April, 2011
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Program for PS excellence
A new program to encourage excellence in Government services has been established in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
   Under the program, all Government service centres will be classified under a one-to-seven star rating system over the next five years on the basis of a set of criteria, including promptness of transactions, availability of information, diversity of channels of delivery and innovation.
   According to the Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum the rating system aimed to encourage Government entities to make a qualitative leap in efficiency by delivering a swift, convenient and comfortable experience to customers.
   Launching the program, Shaikh Mohammad said he was satisfied with the mechanisms to implement it.
   “Delivery of work with the spirit of accuracy and excellence is a Government priority and a national duty that should be respected,” Shaikh Mohammad said.
   He expressed his confidence that steps would be taken to train staff in implementing the new standards and instilling a culture of excellence in different Government bodies as part of UAE Vision 2021.
   “The program will standardise the benchmark for public services in all Government entities,” he said.
   “It includes new categories of service centres, each providing a range of service options from which clients may choose.”
   Shaikh Mohammad said special guidelines for the use of advanced technology in delivery of services and processing transactions would be established.


5 April, 2011
BOTSWANA
Strike looms over zero pay offer
Public Servants in Botswana are on the verge of strike action over a 16 per cent pay claim.
   Industrial action is now almost a certainty after the mediation process that sought to find common ground between the PS and its employer, the Directorate of Public Service Management (DPSM), broke down.
   The DPSM refuses to offer any payrise at all.
   Publicity Secretary of the Botswana Federation of Public Service Unions, Goretetse Kekgonegile, said workers would now serve the employer with a 48-hour industrial action notice when the 30 days mediation period expires on 12 April.
   Mr Kekgonegile said the attitude displayed by the DPSM was reminiscent of the behaviour of military junta agents who had no regard for laid down procedures and the laws of the country.
   “That attitude can only be countered by the only language such regimes understand best, which is total withdrawal of labour by the workers,” Mr Kekgonegile said.
   “The might of the workers shall overcome that attitude.”
   He said the looming industrial action would be so massive that it would bring the whole country to a standstill.
   “It will cost the economy billions of pula as it will include more than 90 per cent of all workers in the education sector, health sector, Land Boards, Local Authorities, and all Departments of Ministries at headquarters and district levels.”
   He said that while unions were willing to shift their position on the 16 per cent demand, the DPSM refused to budge from its zero per cent offer.


5 April, 2011
NIGERIA
New committee for a better PS
President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan has established a new committee to oversee reforms to the Public Service.
   Announced alongside a new committee on Security and Civic Responsibility, the Presidential Committee on the Review of the Reform Processes in the Nigerian Public Service is to be chaired by the former Head of Service for the Nigerian Federation, Mallam Adamu Fika.
   Inaugurating the PS reform committee President Jonathan said it would provide the Government with an opportunity to assess the critical steps in achieving the Vision 20:2020 agenda.
   The President said the inauguration of the Committee was symbolic because the nation was poised to implement good governance, and its establishment would ensure a high standard of living and quality of life for the citizenry.
   “We are currently implementing the National Economic Transformation Strategy, as enunciated in the Vision 20:2020 document,” President Jonathan said, “which is an articulation of the long-term intent to launch Nigeria on a path of sustained social and economic progress and accelerate the emergence of a truly prosperous Nigeria.”
   He said the establishment of the Security and Civil Responsibility Committee had resulted from security breaches across the country.
   “It is disturbing to note that security breaches as well as violence across the country are assuming a serious dimension,” President Jonathan said.
   “Some of these challenges, which are capable of subverting the process, include intra- and inter-political party conflicts, socio-economic agitations, ethno-religious crises, civil and organised rebellions and outright criminality.”
   He said security and welfare of the people formed the primary purpose of Government.
   “Cognisant of our administration’s responsibility to ensure that these challenges do not degenerate into unmanageable proportions, we have taken a number of measures not only to contain them but also to check them before they even emerge,” he said.


5 April, 2011
PHILIPPINES
120 caught in random drug tests
A random drug test of Public Servants employed by the city of Muntinlupa in the Philippines returned 120 positive results.
   The city’s Drug Abuse and Prevention and Control Office (Dapco) said the employees, both on permanent and contractual status, and assigned to different City Government Departments, had all been dismissed.
   More dismissals could follow as the random checks had not been completed.
   Mayor of Muntinlupa, Aldrin San Pedro directed Dapco to conduct the surprise drug checks on all 2,000 Council workers in the wake of alarming drug-related incidents in the country.
   He said it was the objective of the City Government to provide better public service and enhance the performance of its employees.
   The random drug tests covered all officials and employees of the City Government, regardless of their employment status.
   Mr San Pedro said the National Government had long been enforcing a drug-free workplace policy so it was high time that the City Government started its own.
   He said that drug-using employees posed health risks, and suffered from low performance and frequent absences from their jobs.
   “Any individual who is applying for a position or applying for the renewal of his or her contract of employment in the City Government is also covered by this drug-free workplace policy,” Mr San Pedro said.
   He also directed the Personnel Office to conduct an evaluation of service records and performance of all Council employees, and not to renew of contracts of those with pending cases or unsatisfactory performance.


5 April, 2011
NEPAL
Leader’s loss blamed on political pressure
The Public Service union in Nepal has protested against political interference in the PS, claiming the resignation of the Finance Department Secretary was due to political pressure.
   Government employees at the Customs and Revenue offices participated in symbolic protests as the Chair of the Nepal Civil Service Employees Union, Subodh Kumar Devkota, blamed the Government for exerting mental pressure on the Secretary, Rameshwor Khanal.
   Mr Khanal had been resolute about taking action against tax evaders, persons involved in financial irregularities and on the issue of duplicate VAT (GST equivalent) bills.
   The union wants Mr Khanal reinstated and Public Servants have threatened to increase their protests if the Government does not heed their demands.
   The union alleged that the Government was giving encouragement to corrupt persons and defaulters by pressuring Mr Khanal, who had been taking a hard line with those committing economic crimes.
   The union maintains that the Public Service cannot be expected to do its job properly, protecting the public from corrupt individuals seeking to make illegal profits from various dealings, if it was constantly subject to political intervention by Ministers and other legislators with specific agendas.
   “Good governance and the overall prosperity of Nepal are at stake here,” Mr Devkota said.
   The Finance Secretary reportedly tendered his resignation following serious differences with Finance Minister Bharat Mohan Adhikari over a number of issues including the VAT bill and transfers of Ministry officials.


5 April, 2011
SINGAPORE
PS recruits to do community work
A program of appointing newly-recruited administrative staff in the Singapore Public Service to grassroots organisations to gain hands-on experience is to be extended.
   High-potential public sector officers are to be placed in community organisations such as Community Development Councils.
   The program was announced by the Head of the Civil Service, Peter Ong who said placement of these “managers of the future” would include the newest intake of graduates and would start this year with the aim of making them understand better the concerns of people on the ground.
   Until now, this Community Attachment Program was confined to officers who were already in the Administrative Service.
   Mr Ong said that as public servants the newly appointed officers must always have a sense of reality and empathy for the issues affecting Singaporeans.
   “One way we hope to imbue this appreciation of ground issues and dynamics is through more operational postings and grassroots attachments,” Mr Ong said.
   Speaking at the annual dinner and promotion ceremony for the Administrative Service, Mr Ong said 17 Administrative Officers went on six-month stints under the program last year.
   He said the Singapore Public Service had about 277 Administrative Officers, 201 management associates and 42 Singapore Armed Forces Overseas Scholars who were part of its various talent development programs.
   Its processes for developing talent had been compared favourably with the Public Services of many Western nations.


5 April, 2011
And from the World in Brief...
INDIA (Goa)
A new law which seeks to bring more accountability to the public administration of the State, has been referred to a Select Committee by Parliament.
   Under the Goa Public Services Guarantee Bill 2011, any designated official who fails to provide any service to a Goan citizen may face a penalty ranging from RNI500 ($A11) to 5,000 ($A107)
   The aim is to encourage Public Servants to provide essential services to citizens quickly and efficiently.

KUWAIT
The Civil Service Commission has approved a KD100 ($A348) a month public sector pay increase for all Public Servants not included in last year’s round of salary increases.
   The move will benefit 17,000 Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti public sector workers working in various State bodies, regardless of rank.
   The Commission also approved additional financial benefits for assistant engineers in the public sector, as well as launching an inquiry into the possibility of including additional annual funding, such as rent allowances, for expatriate teachers.

CANADA (Ontario)
The Ontario Provincial Government has announced that 1,500 more jobs are to be cut from the Public Service.
   The reduction is in addition to the reduction of about 3,400 full-time Public Service employees announced in the 2009 Budget.
   Major Agencies, such as the Liquor Control Board of Ontario and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, are also being instructed to deliver efficiencies of $C200 million (about the same in Australian dollars) by 2013-14.

UNITED KINGDOM (Jersey)
Top salaries paid to Jersey’s Public Servants are to be subject to greater scrutiny.
   Politicians voted for the body that oversees States employment to control and monitor the salaries of public workers earning more than £100,000 ($A155,000).
   The vote was 36 Members in favour and nine against with one abstention.

FIJI
Two days of capacity training has been delivered to staff at the Department of Fisheries and Forests.
   The aim is to educate workers to the importance of their contribution to good governance.
   The Department is confident the knowledge and skills the officers acquire will enhance their ability to efficiently deliver services.