Political neutrality debate makes civil service reform imperative – Olaopa
The chairman, Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC), Professor Tunji Olaopa, has said that the current public debate on the political neutrality of civil servants has made reform of the civil service imperative. Olaopa, in a statement at the weekend, responded to the disagreement between the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HCSF), Mrs […]
Professor Tunji Olaopa
The chairman, Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC), Professor Tunji Olaopa, has said that the current public debate on the political neutrality of civil servants has made reform of the civil service imperative.
Olaopa, in a statement at the weekend, responded to the disagreement between the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HCSF), Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) president, Joe Ajaero on the role of civil servants in politics.
Walson-Jack had said at a quarterly Stakeholders and Citizens Engagement interactive session that there was a need to safeguard the political neutrality of the civil servants in accordance with their responsibility to any government of the day.
Olaopa recalled that, “In response to the old Supreme Court judgement which reiterates the constitutional provision allowing any citizen of Nigeria to participate in politics, the HCSF argues that the constitutional provision (when conflated with the subordinate provision of the public service rule) permits civil servants the fundamental right to privately support any party of their choice without being drawn into the murky space of high-stake political activities.”
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In response to this, Ajaero argued that both the Nigerian 1999 Constitution and the 2003 Supreme Court judgement in the INEC versus Musa and Others foreground the right of civil servants like all other Nigerians, not just to be card-carrying party members, but also to be involved in all other political activities.