THE CIVIL SERVICE AND DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE IN NIGERIA: ISSUES, PROSPECTS AND NEW HOPES

The civil service is the engine room of modern government. It comprises an assemblage of career officials, recruited in a civil capacity to serve the citizenry. By their training, they are equipped to champion the course of development by faithfully implementation and evaluation of government polices and programmes. They are expected to do this in a transparent and accountable manner. However, the British bequeathed civil service model in Nigeria has failed to meet the expectations of the people judging by the catalogue of dysfunctionalities in the polity. With the use of the elite model, the study submitted that the failure of the ruling elite to adhere to constitutive rules is at the heart of the present crisis plaguing the public sector. To come out of this contraption, the administrative and political elites should embrace the principles of good governance that includes: respect for institutionalism, public accountability, popular participation, equity, among others. Unless these steps are followed, the Nigerian civil service may remain a mere geographical expression with little or no growth and development.