*Asks leaders to leave legacies that will benefit others
*Confers public service excellence award on Jonathan, Wike, 42 others
Deji Elumoye in Abuja
President Muhammadu Buhari has identified nepotism, cronyism, political patronage as some forms of corrupt practices that distract public servants from delivering on their mandates.
The President, who spoke Friday at the maiden edition of the Nigeria Excellence Awards in Public Service (NEAPS), held at the Conference Centre of the State House, Abuja, stressed that the authorities must standardize their penal systems for punishing corruption in public service in order not to send the wrong signal to the public.
Commenting on how corrupt practices slow public service delivery down, President Buhari said “at present, issues in corruption continue to affect the civil services in many countries, around the world. Several reasons of these issues still exist because of the deeply rooted problems like nepotism, cronyism, political patronage as well as lack of transparency and accountability. These vices distract them from delivering on their mandate and aspirations.
“The unsystematic enforcement of law and institutional mechanisms for holding civil servants and public officials accountable of their actions will always lead to a negative impression to the citizens.
President Buhari said leaders in the private and public sectors should be more mindful of their positions as “trustees of the people”, urging them to always work towards leaving a legacy that will be long remembered.
His words: “I wish that leaders will arise and stand up to be counted among leaders who have distinguished themselves to do the right thing and leave their footprints on the sands of time.
“I am particularly happy to recognise His Excellency, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan GCFR, my predecessor, for his contribution to peace building from the Niger-Delta region, which was snowballed into the Nation and now, around the world. Since leaving office, he has deployed his rich experience to ensure peace in many parts of Africa and has led mediation talks in several parts of the globe.
“I want to also specially recognize Abdul Samad Rabiu, the Chairman of BUA International Limited for his interventions in Education through the BUA Foundation, the Abdul Samad Rabiu Africa Initiative (ASR Africa) and his personal philanthropic initiative. This initiative funds tertiary education institutions in Nigeria from its yearly $100million ASR Africa Fund for Social Development and Renewal. I am happy that five Universities have so far benefited with many more to come.
The President urged public servants to make accountability and integrity their watchwords.
“I am equally elated to have some State Governors and my Ministers receive this award. This is to put on record that this award is born out of empirical evidence of performance and not politics. This award is a recognition of the giant strides you all have made towards the transformation of Nigeria and you have consistently put hard work and dedication at the center of your initiatives.
“Let me use this opportunity to say ‘Thank You’ for your contributions to the transformation of our country. This award is a validation of your approach, but much more as a motivation for you and other upcoming leaders to continue doing more towards the attainment of a better Nigeria in all sectors of the economy,’’ he added.
While thanking organizers of the event, The Best Strategic Media (TBS), led by Ms. Mariam Mohammed, a Publisher and Public Relations expert, for the continuous support of his administration, President Buhari said the initiative was commendable “for deploying one of the best indices to determine the level of performance of Public Officers.’’
“I know that Public Officers will be challenged to perform above board now that they know they are being monitored by the people,’’ the President noted.
President Buhari said he was delighted that the maiden edition of the Nigeria Excellence Awards in Public Service (NEAPS) was a private-sector initiative, organized by The Best Strategic Media in collaboration with the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation to recognize excellent service delivery.
In his remarks, former President Jonathan, who received an Award for Peace Building, thanked the President for always making out time to encourage initiatives that recognize the contributions of individuals and institutions to nation-building.
“On behalf of all those that have received awards, I wish to say a very big thank you to the President and organizers,’’ Jonathan said.
Describing the event as unique, the former President assured that the awards will serve as an impetus for more service to the nation and humanity.
Earlier in his speech, Secretary to Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, said NEAPS is an award that recognizes hardwork and purposeful leadership that has contributed to national development.
According to him: “The Nigerian Excellence Award in Public Service is an award that recognizes and rewards innovation, purposeful leadership and other exceptional deserving individuals that have contributed immensely to the growth and development of the public service and the country at large”.
The President presented various categories of awards to 44 recipients including former President Goodluck Jonathan; the President of the Senate, Dr Ahmed Lawan; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila; 16 state governors, including those of Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Rivers and Bauchi.
