Civil servants warned against greed
Sep 20, 2011
Newly recruited civil servants should serve diligently and avoid the pressure to get rich quickly, the Head of Public Service and Secretary to Cabinet, John Mitala has advised.
By Taddeo Bwambale
Newly recruited civil servants should serve diligently and avoid the pressure to get rich quickly, the Head of Public Service and Secretary to Cabinet, John Mitala has advised.
“These days, there is a lot of pressure from both friends and relatives to do all sorts of things to get rich quickly through whatever means. While in principle there is nothing wrong with getting rich, doing so through means such as bribery, corruption and stealing is not worth trying because the consequences are grave,†he said.
Mitala was speaking to 350 newly appointed public service officers from Government ministries and departments at the National Leadership Institute-Kyankwanzi on Monday.
The two-week programme is intended to instill patriotism and equip new public officers with good understanding of the principles and values of Public Service, as part of measures to improve public service delivery.
The training is organised by the Civil Service College established by the public service ministry.
Mitala also cautioned public officers against reckless behaviour that could expose them to HIV infection.
“Having got a job should be no license for you especially male officers to go on rampage and indulge in reckless sexual activities because there is no cure for the deadly disease,†he said.
Mitala decried the habit of poor time management and warned civil servants against concocting excuses for delayed appointments.
He also advised the young professionals to have a positive attitude, read widely to enrich their knowledge and work to improve the image of public service.
Mitala observed that public service still had challenges related to low pay, and proposed a uniform pay for civil servants with similar qualifications to curb what he termed ‘selfishness’ of some institutions that are allowed to determine their pay.
He said the matter would be resolved by establishing an independent body to handle the terms of all civil servants.
Newly recruited civil servants should serve diligently and avoid the pressure to get rich quickly, the Head of Public Service and Secretary to Cabinet, John Mitala has advised.
“These days, there is a lot of pressure from both friends and relatives to do all sorts of things to get rich quickly through whatever means. While in principle there is nothing wrong with getting rich, doing so through means such as bribery, corruption and stealing is not worth trying because the consequences are grave,†he said.
Mitala was speaking to 350 newly appointed public service officers from Government ministries and departments at the National Leadership Institute-Kyankwanzi on Monday.
The two-week programme is intended to instill patriotism and equip new public officers with good understanding of the principles and values of Public Service, as part of measures to improve public service delivery.
The training is organised by the Civil Service College established by the public service ministry.
Mitala also cautioned public officers against reckless behaviour that could expose them to HIV infection.
“Having got a job should be no license for you especially male officers to go on rampage and indulge in reckless sexual activities because there is no cure for the deadly disease,†he said.
Mitala decried the habit of poor time management and warned civil servants against concocting excuses for delayed appointments.
He also advised the young professionals to have a positive attitude, read widely to enrich their knowledge and work to improve the image of public service.
Mitala observed that public service still had challenges related to low pay, and proposed a uniform pay for civil servants with similar qualifications to curb what he termed ‘selfishness’ of some institutions that are allowed to determine their pay.
He said the matter would be resolved by establishing an independent body to handle the terms of all civil servants.