EFFECTIVE PUBLIC SERVICE IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF DEVELOPMENTPLANS OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT: A CASE STUDY OF EDO STATE

This study examined effective public service in the administration of development plans of the federal government: a case study of Edo State. The main objectives of the study were to ascertain if there is any relationship between effective public service and administration of development plans of federal government in Edo State, examine the roles that has or should be played by the public service for Nigerians to benefit from good government and national development, and determine the challenges faced by the public service in promoting government policies for effective national development. The data collected were presented in a tabular form with focus on the major research questions in other to enable the researcher determine the results. The data collected were analyzed using simple percentage. The findings from the study revealed that the structural problem faced by the public service in promoting government policies in Nigeria is personnel regulation; personnel qualification and organizational structure are part of the challenges faced by the public service in promoting national development in Nigeria; the high level of corruption associated with the public service in Nigeria has hampered its role in promoting national development; the Nigerian public service lacks transparency and accountability; and that the ethno-religious hospitalities and the crisis of confidence from the populace compound the problems in the public service. The study further recommends that if the public service is to attain the desired results of development in Nigeria, far reaching reforms are needed, such as, recruitment and promotion of civil servants should be based on merit system as opposed to spoils system. This is because the enthronement of federal character principle of recruitment and other
spoils system have sacrificed efficiency and effectiveness in the Nigerian public service, while rules and regulations are sine qua non for systematic and orderly government, and there is a need for the mental attitudes and believes of the public servants to be reoriented, so that they can cope with the policies of new government.