I was excited to finally graduate from what i had perceived to be a very long journey of acquiring a bachelor's degree.What excited me most was the fact that i was about to serve my country no where else than in Accra.Ever wondered why most people prefer to saty in Accra for National service?This might be because people want to be close to their family and friends and also because with Accra as the capital,they would be able to explore great opportunities that might come their way.Is this entirely true?Let's find out from my experience with National service in Accra.
Most graduates in the public sector find themselves there due to compulsory service posting.Most people lobby their way into companies in both the public and private sectors even before the service postings are released.Some people succeed while others do not.Those who make it smile when the postings are released and immediately proceed with their registration;however those who do not succeed go ahead to register after much effort to have their place of posting changed prove futile.
The National service registration in Accra is one hectic experience.I would not want to go through an experience of this sort twice in a lifetime.The registration process is in stages.First of all,one is required to print an appointment letter and some few other forms from the secretariat's website.It is again required that everyone on the service posting list registers with the National service regional head office.I was posted to Accra for my national service.While i was registering,there was a long queue at every stage of the process.One could spend close to two hours in a queue.I recall a scene where some one stood in a particular queue for hours only to be told when it got to his turn that he had joined the wrong queue.During the registration process i kept asking myself and also overheared other people do same."couldn't anyone develop a system where national service personnels can sit in the comfort of their homes to register online?"
After the first phase of the registration,i was asked to send my appointment letter to the company i was posted to in order to have it signed.I walked with excitement to the place because i had great expectations and hoped to start working there as soon as possible.I expected to learn new things,meet new people and to also receive good remuneration if there happened to be any.The first person i met on my arrival was the Human Resource Manager.He asked that i sit down and wait for him because he was on his way out to the National Service Secretariat.He took over two hours to get back.This i felt was overwhelming.He again asked that i wait.To cut a long story short,asking me to wait became sort of a routine for some days.I was becoming frustrated since this was no way of exhibiting excellence in customer service.Well,maybe i was no customer.
One fascinating thing i noticed however was that,there was a lady in the human resource department who was always playing games.I could hear the sound of the game miles away.Certainly i know there is a vast difference between the public and the private sector,however i expected some little seriousness on the part of employees in the public sector.One good thing i noticed about this public sector however was that they had clearly stated their strategic goals and anyone who walked into the office could read it.
It took over three days to finally sort my posting "wahala"out.Despite what had happened,I still looked forward to a great experience since this was going to be the first one in the public sector.My first assignment was to read a book about the organization and summarise.I was later tasked to put the summary on power point slides.I enjoyed the first two weeks,however subsequently all i was doing was coping and pasting from PDF's to Powerpoint.It did not seem challenging to me after some few weeks and so i felt it was A WASTE OF TIME.
My experience with National Service in the public sector will not be complete without mentioning the "wahala"associated with receiveing the service allowance especially when you are in Accra.I had worked for three months without any allowance from the secretariat.This i thought was a big challenge.Other service personnel's outside Accra had however been paid.I have learnt from this experience that National service is not always about the capital,Accra.Those of us who prayed and maneuvered to ensure that we are posted to Accra might have not been served a fair deal.The question i ask my self now is wheather this country is worth dying for or serving?The answer to this question can be captured in a quote by Dr.Frimpong Boateng on my graduation."The fact that a country is not dying for is the main reason why you should die for it"
By Godfried Ngorli Nyaku
Senior Mentor
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