Governor Affirms Relevance of Technology to Service Delivery 

The Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has emphasised the need for civil/public service to embrace the use of technology for more effective and productive service delivery.

The governor said this, on Thursday, while inaugurating a 20-man Committee to review the Civil and Public Service Rules and Regulations in the state, at the Executive Council Chamber of the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan.

Makinde noted that the administration considered the review expedient because the Civil/Public Service Rules and Regulation Volumes I and II were last reviewed in the year 2013 and most of the rules and regulations guiding the activities of the workers were no longer effective, compared to the emerging environment.

He said: “Some of the rules have not been reviewed since then, and since that time, things have changed very much. For instance, the advancement of technology requires that things be done differently now. But people are still so much used to carrying files around. 

“So, this means that if the civil and public service is to continue being efficient, changes must also be made to the rules that guide the conduct of the activities under the public and civil service,” the governor explained.

Pointing to advancements in technology, Makinde said he had always wished that electronic approval of documents replaced the usual practice of tons of files being dropped on his table for him to append his signature using ink pen.

He charged the Committee to take a holistic look at the existing rules to bring public and civil servants up to speed with the realities of today’s work environment.

Disclosing that there would be areas where the paths of the state and the federal governments would cross. The governor asked the Committee to look at the workability of having to domesticate federal government stipulations regarding the public and civil service, particularly the issue of the retirement age of teachers.

He stated: “The type of federalism we have does not have regard for the sub-nationals as they think they are more important, whereas we are supposed to have co-ordinate powers. I am a believer that the people at the federal level are not smarter than those at the state level. We demonstrated during the Covid-19 pandemic that we can come out with far better ideas compared to that of the federal level.”

The governor maintained that the Committee’s efforts would be complemented by those working in the private sector, who understand how things work, as it would collaborate with Deloitte & Touche Consulting to engender better effectiveness and efficiency in public service operations.

The Committee, headed by a former Head of Service and Secretary to the State Government in the old Oyo State, Chief Adebisi Adesola, has as members: representatives of the Association of Retired Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Service in Oyo and Osun States, representatives of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs); representatives of labor unions and representatives of Deloitte & Touche Consulting.

Dominica Nwabufo