MPs call for more scrutiny in public service recruitment

Lawmakers have urged the Public Service Commission to establish systematic ways to scrutinise recruitment of public servants and institutional management. Members of the senatorial Standing Committee on Social Affairs were yesterday scrutinising the commission’s 2014/15 report. Gallican Niyongana, the chairperson of the committee, said systematic assessment would minimise concerns raised over employee recruitment and management. The Public Service Commission has highlighted several challenges the public service encounters, including of employees seeking to switch jobs before serving three years in the position as per the law governing public servants, ‘experts’ that are hired to conduct recruitment tests in domains where they do not have expertise, and corruption in its various forms. Other challenges are advertising jobs that have already been occupied, poor treatment of employees, frustration of employees and nepotism and favouritism in training opportunities for employees. On employee turnover, Senator Perrine Mukankusi advised the commission to work on retention policy. “There is a need to put in place a mechanism that will make employees feel ownership of their respective institutions. This will encourage them to stay longer on their jobs. We also need a conducive work environment instead of blackmailing people,” Senator Mukankusi said. Gallican Niyongana, the president of the senatorial standing committee on social affairs listens to François Habiyakare. (T.Kisambira) Complaints In the Financial Year 2014/15, the Public Service Commission received 397 complaints, of which 93 concerned employee recruitment and placement, while 304 were related to employee management. Of the 397 complaints, 81, or 20.4 per cent, were related to public service sector reform of 2014. Of the 93 complaints concerning employee recruitment and appointment, 42 were related to recruitment tests while 51 were related to employee appointment. François Habiyakare, the head of Public Service Commission, said measures to tackle such issues have been devised. “An online recruitment platform is being developed to avoid physical contact between the applicant and the recruiter,” Habiyakare said. “We hope that this electronic recruitment (e-Recruitment) will reduce chances of corruption. We also proposed the establishment of a particular institution mandated with public service recruitment to ensure professionalism and impartiality in the recruitment process.” He said the commission was also thinking of how recruitment tests can be conducted even before vacancies are available so that the commission can have a kind of data bank and appoint people once there is need. In so doing, Habiyakare added, the commission could reduce both the chances of corruption and the money spent in recruitment process. However, he conceded that such a drastic measure needs deeper analysis in terms of decentralisation. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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MPs call for more scrutiny in public service recruitment