Office Of SSG: Creating The Right Environment For Government’s Effective Service Delivery –Macaulay BY MONDAY UWAGWU NO creature is healthier than its heart-Ancient African proverb. In every organisation, the heart of every operation is its secretariat, which, in a sense, accounts for the tempo and quality of its (organisation’s) success. With respect to government, especially at the state government level, the heart is located in the Office of the Secretary to State Government (SSG). In Delta State, the Office of the SSG is headed by Comrade Samuel Ovuozourie Macaulay, who, on Monday, addressed a press conference to kick-start a catalogue of media briefs by civil commissioners in the state. At that brief, the SSG highlighted the philosophy of the state government, which is cost-efficient service delivery, and how, via its multi-dimensional but related activities, the office drives the dream of the Uduaghan administration for excellence in lieu of its three-point agenda of peace and security, human capital development and infrastructure development. AN OFFICE AND ITS UNIQUE MANDATE Without an iota, the office of the SSG is of strategic importance in the operations of the state government , and, to a very large extent, is responsible for the tempo of success that attends the policies, programmes, schemes and projects of the administration. As the epicentre of the web of operations of the government, it is both the hub and clearing house for all policies and programmes of the government emanating from ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), and on that account, also functions as the operational structure for the proper coordination and implementation of projects and programmes.Of course, to effectively coordinate the MDAs and ensure the effective implementation of the policies and programmes as enunciated under the three-point agenda of the Uduaghan administration,the Office of the SSG also does monitoring activities, as well as assisting, guiding and moderating the actions/activities of the MDAs. Significantly, it is the operational secretariat of the State Security Council, which meets weekly to assess the overall security situation in the state and fashion out appropriate responses to it. The importance of the Office of SSG in relation to security matters in the state is best appreciated against the backdrop of the fact that, aside housing the secretariat of the strategic State Security Council, the issue of security is at the heart of the overall goal/agenda of the Uduaghan administration. It requires no gainsaying to hold that, in an effort to ensure the overall success of the policies and programmes of the administration, the Office of the SSG, aside all its other legion responsibilities, ensures that the enabling policies /programmes and their underlying goals and philosophies are clearly understood by the stakeholders. This is to ensure that there is no lacuna that can create effective impediments to the realisation of the broad goals of the policies/programmes and the desire of the government in that direction. Aside all else, the Office of the SSG, using the reservoir of expertise available to it, is responsible for advising the state governor on the intendment and desirability or otherwise of draft policies and programmes put forward by the respective MDAs. Clearly, the strategic importance of the Office of the SSG in the attainment of the aims and goals of the different policies and programmes of the government, is crystal-clear, even to the blind and ignorant. It is in realisation of the huge burden inherent in his office that the subsisting SSG, Comrade Samuel Ovuozuorie Macaulay, strong on the heels of his appointment, had to effect the reforms necessary for enhanced results, based on the government’s laid down principle of cost-efficiency. Of course, the overhaul of the internal mechanisms and organs of the office as part of the larger reform, have helped to deepen the tempo of compliance to cost-efficiency, and entrench an enviable work attitude among staff. The SSG, in effecting the necessary restructure/reform, had to latch on his huge reservoir of knowledge, skill, experience and competency as a reckonable journalist, an effective public officer, a conflict prevention and management expert and a labour leader, all rolled into one. The result? The Office of the SSG is now in its best position ever to deliver on its mandate of ensuring the cost-efficient delivery of services to Deltans, across the entire length and breadth of the infrastructure/service spectrum. A UNIQUE OFFICE AND ITS CATALOGUE OF ACTIVITIES As head of an office that , essentially, is the threshing floor of all government’s activities and responsible for the coordination of the conversion of politics and policies to core administration programmes as well as converting political commitments into objectives and goals of the government, Comrade Macaulay has effectively deployed the right mix of high calibre personnel, development and analytical tools to telling positive effects. In this respect, the Office of SSG, under his watch, has continued to undertake: . regular issuance of notices of policy decisions on government’s programmes for public enlightenment, and for the mobilisation of popular participation in them; .promptly attending to all appeals, petitions and reports with the aim of addressing alleged grievances , attending to the plight of the needy and raising agenda for the overall socio-economic development of the state; .taking responsibility for the performance of the Cabinet Secretariat, through which the the general coordination of inter-ministerial activities and follow –ups , in respect of government’s policies and programmes are undertaken; . hosting, on behalf of the government, of different trade educational and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) as well as policy-based/institutional delegations to the state for sundry purposes-investment, study tours and other official reasons/purposes; .supervising and/ or facilitating the work of strategic offices as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Office; the New Partnership for Africa Development (NEPAD) Office and other Special Project Units, and .Integrating new political appointees into their new work environment by the effective provision of necessary services to enable them settle down. It is note-worthy, for instance, that the Office of SSG has, in this year alone hosted, on behalf of the government, the Good Governance Team , led by Information and Communications Minister, Labaran Maku (which gave the thumb up for the state government in respect of service delivery and organisational ability during the tour); the delegation from the Command and Staff College, Jaji, as well as experts from the National Institute for Security Studies, from Abuja. It also played host to the Economic Development Office of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). SECURITY ELEMENT OF A UNIQUE MANDATE In ancient Africa, it is said that only the safe can be venturesome. This proverb underlines the importance of security to any organisation-public or private. In pursuit of wholesome development across the state, the government, quite wisely, made peace and security as a core element of its three-point agenda, which it pursues, with missionary zeal, through the mechanism of the State Security Council. As the secretariat of the State Security Council (SSC), the Office of the SSG is instrumental to the realisation of the goal underlying the government’s peace initiatives. And it has lived up to billing in this respect. As proof of its commitment in that regard, the government has, in collaboration with security agencies in the state, restored order in existing flashpoints and is enabling security agencies, with necessary platforms, kits, equipment and adequate competency, to respond to emerging strands of crime as kidnapping and high-stake armed robbery. But crime-fighting is not only being fought through the directly traditional means, via the deployment of security men, appropriate intelligence, platforms, arms and ammunition, but also such a novel way as the employment of hands-1,018 of them-as members of Youth and Women Development Committees with responsibility for grass root monitoring of youth activism and general information in their areas of operation. This is aside of the engagement of traditional rulers/chiefs, youth leaders, market women and security agencies in the resolution of conflicts and promotion of peace, apart from the deployment of military personnel to major towns as Asaba, Agbor and Warri and their environs. BUILDING THE REQUISITE MANPOWER Modern-era economists hold-and not a few would disagree with this-that man and his competence are the single most influential factor in the development of any organisation, community or society. The truth of this is not lost on the Office of the SSG, under the watch of Comrade Macaulay. In this regard, the office has enhanced the competency of its staff through exposure to seminars and workshops organised by credible institutions and professional institutes, including the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON); Centre for Management Development (CMD), Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM). As part of efforts at enhancing positive work attitude, encouraging productivity and rewarding excellence among staff, the office has introduced an interactive, calibrated monthly in-house performance- enhancement training sessions, during which staff exchange ideas and ask pertinent questions on real work situations, with a view to impacting positively on service delivery and work situation performance. THE CHALLENGES There is hardly any venture without a challenge. This much is true of any organisation, office or community. The Office of SSG is no exception to this generic fact. However, the truth, and the joy, of it all, is that, it has nothing to do with competency of staff or any of the other more debilitating challenges-it merely has to do with the limitation of resources in relation the huge schedule demand on office. Of course, the limitation in terms of resources available to the office is not deliberate-it is a reflection of the generic challenge that faces every organisation, community and government, in relation to the total outlay of responsibilities inherent in their respective mandates. THE FUTURE That, like every human organisation, the Office of SSG has its challenges is self-evident; every coin, it is said, has two sides. But what is, without doubt, equally undeniable is the stoic determination of Comrade Macaulay and his team to continue to work, in collaboration with all other stakeholders, to serve as the critical hub and threshing floor of an administration, which, ab initio, places maximum premium on the good and well-being of the people for today, tomorrow and beyond. That commitment, solidly etched in their sub-conscious of staff of the Office of SSG, is the driving spirit of Monday’s press brief by the SSG, Comrade Macaulay, and the philosophy under-pinning his vow that, in rain and shine, the administration of which it is a critical spin, will keep faith with its solemn promise to selflessly serve Deltans, for their overall good, today, tomorrow and beyond.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Jul 2013 01:04:22 +0000
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