Posted by Chester Morton / Tuesday 29 November 2016 / No comments
The main features of the Civil Service
Definition of Civil Service
The Civil service is the entity that is charged with the
responsibility of carrying out government policies, providing services to the
public and keeping the machinery of government running.
FEATURES
Has a hierarchical structure
One of the features of the Civil Service is its hierarchical
organization. There is a Minister responsible for a ministry, under whom there is a Chief Director whose position is non-political and referred to as the
Director-General. Other positions follow in an order of rank to the lowest in the service, each reporting to the next senior officer until it reaches the top.
Administrative wing of the Executive
Another feature of the Civil Service is that it serves as the
administrative arm of the executive. It
provides services to the general public. Such services include the registration
of land documents, acquisition of passports and driving license, etc.
It is permanent
The Civil service is permanent. It does not change with the
change in government. They serve every government that comes into power,
regardless of the party colouration. Their top hierarchy is not supposed to be
removed when another government comes into office though this happens in some cases, especially in Africa.
It is anonymous
Another feature is that the Civil service is anonymous. Its operatives do not come into the limelight. It operates in the dark, so to
speak. It is only the political head of the ministry whom is known. The Civil Servant cannot
be blamed for the failure of a programme and cannot receive commendation for the success of any of them. The political head receives the praise and the blame.
Neutrality
The Civil Service is neutral in its work. It does not
interfere in the political arena. It serves whichever political party is in
power and help it to achieve whatever policies they want to introduce. A Civil Servant is obliged to hide his political affiliation and pursue his work as a professional.
SAMPLE QUESTIONS
1. a. Define the term Civil Service. [3 marks]
b. Highlight five
features of the Civil Service. [12 marks]
