Professor Ransford Gyampo, a renowned political scientist at the University of Ghana, has sounded a warning bell about the negative impact of partisan appointments on the productivity of Ghana’s civil service.
According to Professor Gyampo, the practice of appointing party sympathizers to key positions in the civil service, regardless of their qualifications or competence, has become a major obstacle to the effective delivery of public services.
“The civil service has become a means by which politicians reward their supporters,” Professor Gyampo lamented in an interview on a local television station. “This has led to a situation where square pegs are often put in round holes, resulting in a lack of productivity and efficiency in the delivery of public services.”
Professor Gyampo noted that the concept of the civil service, as propounded by the German sociologist Max Weber, was designed to ensure that the state had qualified and competent personnel to manage its affairs. However, he argued that this concept has been turned on its head in Ghana, where partisan considerations often take precedence over merit and competence.
The consequences of this approach, according to Professor Gyampo, are dire. “When you have people who are not qualified or competent in certain positions, they are unable to deliver on their mandate,” he said. “This leads to a lack of productivity and efficiency in the delivery of public services, which in turn undermines the overall development of the country.”
To address this challenge, Professor Gyampo advocated for a more merit-based approach to appointments in the civil service. “We need to ensure that appointments are based on merit and competence, rather than partisan considerations,” he said. “This is the only way we can ensure that the civil service is able to deliver on its mandate and support the overall development of the country.”
