Bill to ensure public servants work

THE Public Service Management Act 2019 passed by Parliament yesterday will ensure that public servants who fail to perform in their work will be sacked, says Public Service Minister Soroi Eoe.
He said it was a “cascading approach” where the agency heads’ key performance indicators (KPIs) were translated into their deputies’ key result areas (KRAs).
“So everyone in the hierarchy of the bureaucracy delivers expected outcomes,” he said.
Among the reforms, heads of state agencies will have five-year contracts, to be on par with the term of housing and accommodation for public servants and partners through the public-private partnership arrangement.
He said Prime Minister James Marape had tasked the Lands and Physical Planning Department to identify vacant state land for public servants’ homes.
“Another important reform is to ensure that public servants are on a nationally-owned medical and health insurance scheme. Discussions are in progress with the Nambawan Super Ltd,” he said.
Eoe said the Public Service Commission had also been brought back.
“The reforms being reintroduced are not controversial. The new Act revived reforms already enacted five years ago,” he said.
“The financial and human resource accountability functions of agency heads are reflected in this new bill to ensure that there is prudent management of staffing levels and organisational structures; prudent management of personnel emoluments within the approved budget; and prudent financial management including budgeting and expenditure control.”