The Chronicle

BULAWAYO, Tuesday, April 16, 1993 — A Cabinet minister has blamed political interference of bogging down efficiency in the civil service and called for more professionalism in Government departments.

Addressing an employers’ conference on productivity, management and improvement under the economic structural adjustment programme, the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Cde John Nkomo, said a reduction in the number of civil servants alone would not bring about efficiency but there was a need to introduce professional direction.

“The answer does not lie in reducing the size of the civil service alone, and we have to introduce programmes to raise the level of awareness and commitment in the civil servants,” he said.

Last year, the Government abolished more than 9 000 posts in the civil service as part of the economic structural adjustment programme.

Those retrenched included 179 undersecretaries and deputy secretaries.

Cde Nkomo said even though some people may argue that there was need for political direction in running the civil service, the current economic changes in the country were against such a move.

Turning to Esap, Cde Nkomo said the programme had been successful despite the devastating drought last year which resulted in more workers being retrenched.