Aging public servants asked to make way for new blood

By GLENDA AWIKIAK
Maprik MP John Simon has called on public servants in his district who are in their retirement age to resign and give space to new graduates.
He was responding to concerns raised about public servants in Maprik no longer performing their duties actively.
Simon said such public servants had done their time.
“We appreciate all the good work they have done,” he said.
“We understand their skills and knowledge are no longer competent for the current pace and time.
“Therefore, they would find themselves not performing to expected outcome.
“It is time they leave and give space to the new ones that are coming out of the universities and colleges to take over from where they left.
“There is no point employing them when they cannot perform or are not fit in performing their required duties of serving the people.
“We have our young graduates who are wanting to serve in the district but there is no space.
“It is time we make way for them.
“I really would like to say ‘thank you’ to our good public servants who had served our district and people of Maprik over the years to where we are now. We have done ratings on the performance output of our current public servants.
“We have found that many their performance levels are rated below 40 per cent.”
Simon said many agricultural officers lacked motivation and did “very little” extension work.
“I have a lot of programmes running currently in the district, including cocoa nursery projects and rehabilitation, and livestock in terms of cattle, piggeries and poultry,” he said.
“However, very little input was done by these officers and yet they live and work in the district.
“In terms of them visiting these projects, I would say in the whole of last 12 months was less than 10 per cent of their time.
“Maprik is a rural-based economy that depends on agriculture as its main source of revenue.”