i

FEDERAL UNIVERSITY LOKOJA

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

ASSIGNMENT QUESTION: EXAMINE THE EXTENT TO WHICH NIGERIA’S

FEDERAL BUREAUCRACY IS EFFECTIVE IN
IMPLEMENTING POLICIES

BY

OBAGBOYE FELIX
SPUG202420250413

COURSE CODE: PUB 211 (FUNDAMENTALS OF PUBLIC

ADMINISTRATION)

COURSE LECTURER: CHINEDU OFOMA, PhD

JANUARY, 2025
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Introduction

It is the desire and responsibility of every nation in the world including Nigeria to provide for the
welfare of its citizens. This is achieved through government designed policies aimed at
developing various sectors of the society, and Nigeria having been regarded all over the world as
a leading nation in terms of socio- economic and infrastructural development in the entire
African continent, has over the years desired to develop the country in the areas of agriculture,
education, health care, housing, transportation, communication, technology, infrastructure,
commerce, banking, roads, and water among others (Elem, 2016). In a bid to achieve these needs
that might exist at various point in time, government is always confronted with formulating
policies to tackle them, aimed at achieving the desired growth and national development for the
wellbeing of the citizens. In some situations, these problems are tackled as they arise to avoid
degenerating to uncontrollable level (Okoli and Onah, 2002).

Federal bureaucracy (civil and public service) constitutes the permanent and professional part of
the executive organ of government. They are non-political permanent and professionally trained
civil and public service that runs the administration of the state according to the policies and laws
of the government political executive. Thus, the qualities and efficiency of bureaucracy
determine the quality and efficiency of the state administration. It, however, works under the
leadership and control of the Political Executive. The terms public bureaucracy is
interchangeably used with the following terms, civil service, public service, government service,
etc. Also, bureaucrats are interchangeably used with the term, public servants, civil servants,
government officials permanent executives, and the non-political executive are used to describe
all such persons who carry out the day to day administration of the state. The terms federal
bureaucracy' and 'public or civil service' are synonyms (Asaju & Ayeni, 2023).

Efforts at establishing the important link or relationship between federal bureaucracy and the
effort at achieving development goals of the country require an understanding of the important
role of federal bureaucracy and this seems not to be the case in many works of literature
overtime. The emphasis has been on economic issues, issues related to leadership, democracy
corruption, federalism, security, religion, among others. However, there is a strong relationship
between federal bureaucracy and quest to achieve national development in both the developed
and the developing countries of the world including Nigeria. Due to increase role and
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intervention of the state in virtually all aspects of development in modern states, the role of
federal bureaucracy becomes more sacrosanct and exigency. A United Nation's Report in 2005
indicates, “no matter how organized and constitutional a government is, it would not get very far
in the absence of public administration system capable of translating its broad political
intentions, its laws and delivering service needed by the people without a professionally
competent public administration. The state cannot count on making those things happen which
they want to happen or on pre-empting undesirable developments (Asaju & Ayeni, 2023).

However, it seems federal bureaucracy in Nigeria has not lived up to expectation in playing a
pivotal role in the quest to achieve national development in Nigeria. Federal bureaucracy in
Nigeria is inefficient, ineffective and thus incapable of driving the wheel of development
envisaged in the country. The Nigerian federal bureaucracy is synonymous to delay, red-tapism
bureaucratic bottleneck, formalism, inefficiency, failure, corruption, nepotism among other
negativities. Onah (2003) contends that the general inefficiency, ineffectiveness, and poor
service delivery in the Nigerian public service result from inadequate recruitment and selection
procedures and practices in the employment of manpower and lack of clear human resource
objectives.

Furthermore, issues such as excessive bureaucracy, political interference, corruption, poor

working conditions, poor work ethics, out-dated and outmoded systems, procedures, and
practices among others, conspire to impact adversely on service delivery by the public sector
organizations (Ezeani, 2006). The forgoing calls to question the place of the public bureaucracy
in Nigeria.

Conceptual Underpinning: Bureaucracy, Public Policy Formulation and Implementation

The term bureaucracy is believed to have its origin as a reference to a cloth covering the desks of
French government officials in the 18th century. Early usage of bureaucracy referred to an
official workplaces (bureau) in which individual activities were routinely determined by explicit
rules and regulations (Dudley 2003:126). According to Okoli (2003:1), the height of research on
bureaucracy seemed to have been reached with the monumental work of Marx Weber, a German
Sociologist of the organizational revolution. Okoli maintains that Weber's main concern was
with the rationalization of authority into an impersonal and bureaucratized institutions or
organizations. Hence, the distinguishing characteristics of bureaucracy are, among others, a rigid
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distinction between the office and its incumbent, a well-defined hierarchical distribution of
authority; the horizontal division of labour according to differentiated functions and technical
skills, recruitment based on merit and strict adherence to an impersonal body of rules.

In line with the norms of bureaucracy therefore, organizations are designed on the basis of
knowledge. The higher officers direct the lower ones on the basis of knowledge and experience
gathered over time. It is on this note that Weber insists that recruitment and appointments to
positions and offices must be made on the basis of qualifications and professional competencies
ascertained, through written examinations. In the light of this, Okafor (2005:67) sees
bureaucracy as the apparatus of government designed to implement the decisions of political
leaders. James Q. Wilson referred in Dudley (2003) furthers one's understanding of the
differences in private and public bureaucracies, particularly, pointing out the importance of the
political dimension in which bureaucracies operate.

First is the theme of bureaucratic politics, where bureaucrats are seen as important actors in
policy decisions. Second is that of the control of the political system over bureaucratic choices
and performance; and third is that of the relationship between bureaucracy and democracy,
particularly in terms of being representative and responsive to the needs and aspirations of the
public.

Salient Issues Affecting Policy Implementation

In the Nigerian public service, the bureaucracy is hampered by several constrains that impede
public policy implementation.

They include but not limited to the following:

1. The issue of politicization of the bureaucracy;

2. Lack of Political will to commit resources to policy implementation;

3. Corruption;

4. Political interference; and

5. Conflict between politicians and bureaucrats.

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The issue of politicization of the bureaucracy

Roger in Onah (2003:206) conceives politicization as "a process by which politicians control
bureaucracy by means of manipulating recruitment, education, training and promotions to imbue
bureaucracies with overt explicit commitments to the political goals of government of the day".
Buttressing Roger's definition of politicization, Onah (2003:209) submits that: "... observation in
recent survey is that at appointments, be it grade level 07 and above or grade level 01-06,
members of the commission (politicians) present their own list, the local government Chairman
and his group present their own list, then the Governor's sacrosanct list. The process of
recruitment, selection and appointment are consummated by marrying the lists and publishing
same". Whereas, going by the principles of Weberian bureaucracy and the Nigeria Public Service
Rule, appointment into the Local Government system and the public bureaucracy generally
ought to be based on merit rather than political and other considerations (Edino, Paul & Haruna,
2014 p.47). The consequences are many. First, the bureaucrats (at whatever level of the
organization) whose employment was manipulated by a godfather, owes his loyalty to his
"helper" - the godfather. Consequently, there is no strict adherence to established rules and
regulations. Bureaucrats tend to bend the rules in most instances for personal aggrandizement.
Secondly, this generates poor performance of the public service and in service delivery
generally. In the light of this, Yayale (2004 p. 13) laments:

An objective assessment of our public institutions shows that they are mostly far
from meeting...expectations.....We know the experiences of contractors and
other members of the public who visit government ministries either for
transactions or mere information. The attitude and services of the Police receive
daily commentaries. The standard of construction and pattern of maintenance of
our roads are known. What about the hassles parents go through in securing
admission for their children in schools and the unstable calendars of our higher
institutions of learning? Should we be remanded of the services of PHCN in the
supply of electricity and its billing system?

Obviously, the consequences of politicizing the bureaucracy are enormous.

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Experience has shown that politicians often have their ideology, agenda and manifestoes
which culminate in promises to the electorate. Experience has also revealed that one
thing is to promise the masses, another thing is to fulfill promises by committing
resources to service delivery. Unfortunately, in most cases, the bureaucracy is
handicapped by lack of fiscal and material resources not made available with the
implication been that such policies will not be effectively implemented (Onyekwelu,
Okpalibekwe & Dike, 2015). In like manner, Uno (2015, p. 96) laments that most
policies in Nigeria have failed due to lack of accountability on the part of political
leadership and public servants alike. Similarly, in a town hall meeting organized by the
Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Commission (ICPC) in conjunction with
the National Orientation Agency (NOA), the ICPC zonal commissioner in charge of
Anambara, Enugu and Ebonyi states, Mr Amodu Sule noted that "the rate at which
constituency projects fail was alarming". Sule pointed out that "constituency projects are
selected by legislators and provided for in the budgets of government ministries and
agencies for execution, whereas, there are other projects that are developed and
implemented directly by the executive arm of government" (Okafor, 2020). This implies
a foul play on the part of the politicians and the bureaucrats a like.

Political interference

This connotes a situation where bureaucratic decisions are influenced, maneuvered and
in most cases altered by the politicians for political advantage. Illustrating the scenario,
Rogger (2014:7) noted that "once a project in a particular politician's constituency has
been delegated to an organization, the politicians must choose whether to interact with
the bureaucrats there and provide them with informal incentives". Rogger pointed out
that "the formal incentive structure in the civil service is rigidly defined by the public
service rules. Consequently, varying the formal contracting structure for a specific
constituency is difficult if not impossible. Rogger concludes that if a politician wants to
motivate a bureaucrat on a particular project in a constituency, he/she would have to
provide these incentives informally. This requires interaction between politicians and
bureaucrats. Thus, politicians can then offer an incentive contract made up of both elicit
transfers and coercion.
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Conflict between politicians and bureaucrats

Undoubtedly, both the politicians and the bureaucrats are involved in public policy formulation
and implementation. The top bureaucrats mainly guide the politicians by offering them expert
advice on the basis of their experience, expertise and in most cases, laid down rules and
procedures. However, experience has shown that most of the politicians have no regard for rules
and procedures. Ikwem (2014, p. 3) puts the scenario in a clearer perspective when she posits
that "while some political bosses may see civil servants as ultra conservative, too slow, lacking
in initiative, corrupt and even label them as evil servants, the bureaucrat sees political appointees
as a bunch of short timers who show no respect for laid down rules, regulations and procedures
in their inordinate pursuit of political and selfish goals". In same vein, the question of who is
really ''in charge'' - the politician or the bureaucrat remains conflictual. While the politician
claims to have the political power (people's mandate) the bureaucrat on the other hand claims to
have the knowledge, experience and the expertise for getting things done.

Challenges Militating Against Federal Bureaucracy Implementation of Public Policies

Public bureaucracy is a noble profession and should and noble in terms of ensuring the effective
management of accountability in governance. Public bureaucracy ensures that public officials
(elected and unelected) and other state actors adapt to the best practices in carrying out their
duties. For all these state actors to function effectively, they must guide against what Peter
(1997) referred to as 'Bureau Pathology'. He defines Bureau Pathology as those negative
administrative behaviours of professionals and experts in the organisation that impede the
achievement of public goals and delivery of quality public services to consumers. To him, it
manifests when public servants misconceive their powers, functions and responsibilities, act ultra
vires in bad faith, out of malice or even with ill motives, thereby receiving tips and cash benefits
for services rendered to consumers. Public servants here use their status, positions and authority
to procure for themselves some benefits from investors, contractors, consultants and suppliers
(Madibo, 1978).
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The consequences of bureau pathology according to Peters (1997) is that it violates the
economic, social and political rights of the consumers of public service. It also sabotages of
government socio-economic and political programmes to the disadvantage of constituents and
causes the delay of service delivery to strategic investors and other consumers.

The manifestation of bureau pathology in the Nigerian Public service is enormous with great
consequences on effective service delivery and national development in Nigeria. Efforts put in
place through reforms to make the public bureaucracy more professional, accountable and
responsible seem not to yield the desired result. Bureau pathology has created a wide gap of
distrust between the citizens and the government. Efforts at ensuring financial accountability and
transparency have been futile.

Many scholars and analyst (Asaju, & Adagba, 2011) have enunciated the relationship between
corruption in the Nigerian public service and national development. They all agree that the high
level of corruption in the public service in Nigeria is the bane to Nigerian quest to achieve
national development. Successive governments in Nigeria have initiated several reforms and
other policy measures to reduce the high rate of corruption, but it seems these measures have not
yielded the desired result. For example, realizing the level of corruption in the Nigerian public
service, the present government at its inception in 2023 ordered that all outstanding audit queries
piled up over the years be resolved within 30 days (Ndujihe &Nwabugbogu, 2005). The law
(Civil Services Re-organization Decree No. 43 of 1988) empowers the Office of the Accountant-
General of the Federation to supervise the accounts of federal and extra ministerial departments,
collate, present and publish statutory financial statements of account as required by Ministry of
Finance. It also conducts routine and indebt inspection of the books of accounts of federal
ministries and extra-ministerial departments to ensure compliance with rules and regulations,
policies and internal audit guides, and investigate cases of fraud, loss of fund, assets and store
items and other financial malpractices in ministries/extra-ministerial departments. Besides, the
AGF ensures revenue monitoring and accounting; provides a system for the monitoring of
accounts of all ministries, department and agencies and ensure timely submission of financial
statements to the Auditor-General of the federation. If the Auditor-General is not satisfied with
the report, He issues a query. The use of audit query is also to check fraud and ghost workers
phenomenon. An audit query is a request for an explanation over improprieties discovered in the
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Accountant-General of the federation reports. This often takes place quarterly (Ndujihe
&Nwabugbogu, 2005).

Successive Nigerian governments have established special anti-corruption institutions (i.e.

EFCC, ICPC, etc.) operated by public bureaucrats to ensure accountability and transparency in
governance and public administration. Also, special units established within the various
ministries and extra ministerial departments to check and report any act of corruption in the
Nigerian Public Service. They include SERVICE COMPACT (SERCICOM), Due Process, and
recently IPPIS, among others. Studies have shown that despite these measures, corruption is still
rife in the Nigerian Public Service.

The public service is a noble profession. It ought to play a major role in managing the scarce
resources of the state transparently and efficiently to achieve national development and enhance
the general wellbeing of the citizens.

Effectiveness of Federal Bureaucracy in Implementing Policies

The effective functioning of the public sector is crucial for economic growth. This project,
requested by the Head of Nigeria’s Civil Service, assessed the link between management
practices and productivity in the public sector to inform reforms.

The study found that granting civil servants more autonomy is associated with more effective
public organisations, but management practices related to providing incentives or stricter
monitoring of employees are associated with less effective organisations. The findings are
already being used by the Civil Service to influence management and human resources policies

An effective bureaucracy is crucial for public service delivery, which in turn impacts the
productivity of the manufacturing sector, the agricultural sector, and human capital. Our research
surveyed nearly 80 civil servants and assessed over 20 projects across every ministry and
department in Nigeria’s federal government to study the link between management and
productivity in the public sector.
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The study found large differences in management practices and project completion rates across
organisations within Nigeria’s public sector. It also found that granting bureaucrats more
autonomy is associated with more effective bureaucracies (i.e., more projects being completed).

Surprisingly, our research found that management practices related to providing incentives or
stricter monitoring of employees are associated with less effective bureaucracy. The researchers
had previously found the same pattern in a study of Nigeria’s Federal Civil Service, suggesting
that the focus of civil service reforms on introducing stronger incentives for bureaucrats could
backfire. Nigeria’s Head of Civil Service stated that the government is already using the
evidence to influence policy on management and human resources practices, and implementing a
training programme based on the findings of this study. A follow-on IGC project is using the
project findings to further design a training programme to improve the productivity of civil
service employees and evaluate its impact on participants.

Conclusion

Federal bureaucracy remains the pivot of national development in Nigeria. The history of the
Nigerian Public service dates back to the colonial era when her major role in the maintenance of
law and order and collection of taxes for the colonial master. After independent in 1960, the
quest to achieve accelerated development became the major target of the indigenous government.
The public service apart from their traditional role thus assumed a new role of ensuring that the
government achieved all its development objectives and targets efficiently and effectively. These
additional responsibilities required specialized skills and professionalism on the part of the
public bureaucracy. In other words, these additional roles call for skilled, experienced,
professional, honest, politically neutral, unbiased, discipline and result-oriented public service.
However, this has not been so despite all efforts put in place through various reforms over the
years. Having an effective and result-oriented public service capable of delivering qualitative
services to the citizens would accelerate national development in Nigeria.
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