CSC concerned over lack of qualified SGs for councils
CSC President Mohamed Nasih said that SGs have not been appointed for 75 councils still.
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By
Mohamed Muzayyin Nazim
Civil Service Commission (CSC) on Sunday expressed concern over the lack of applicants to the post of the Secretary General (SG), responsible for the administration duties of local councils even after lowering the job qualifications and requirements.
With the amendment to the Decentralisation Act in 2019, an SG is required to be appointed to conduct council administration.
CSC continues seeking SGs for councils elected in April 2019:
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200 SGs sought for four city councils, and various atoll and island councils
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More than a year later, some councils still do not have SGs
CSC on Sunday announced SG vacancies for 42 island councils and four atoll councils. This is the second time the qualifications have been lowered. CSC has announced for SGs six times so far.
CSC President Mohamed Nasih told Atoll Times that SGs have not been appointed for 75 councils still. He said that the announced 46 SG vacancies are for the islands that have not even had applicants for the job.
Nasih noted some of the reasons why SGs are hard to find:
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Those who qualify for the post do not live in the islands.
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Since SGs are appointed for five-year terms, people hesitate to leave their permanent civil service jobs for SG posts.
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Some have expressed concern over the lack of adequate remuneration for island councils when island council SGs have a tougher work load than atoll council SGs.
The first announcements sought degree-level applicants. To widen the range for applicants, CSC lowered educational qualification to diploma level, and after having announced this way for a second time, Nasih expressed his concern over the continued lack of applications.
"We reduced required qualifications from degree level to diploma, because we are aware that degree level applicants are not likely to be residents on these islands. Regardless, we are still unable to allocate SGs for those islands,” Nasih said.
Nasih noted that although there are qualified people for the job who belong to these islands, most of them live in Male.
"We have to make repeated announcements because there are no applications. Now this announcement has been made for the sixth time," he said.
CSC's vision to amend the law
Nasih said that one of the concerns expressed by some councils at the Viavathi Raajje symposium held in L. Gan was also the lack of SG issue. Nasih believes that a final solution to the issue will be found by amending the law.
"We will also hold discussions with the LGA (Local Government Authority] to amend the law,” he said.
Nasih said that efforts must be made to find a solution to the issue after studying the factors surrounding it.
Some of the recommendations made by Nasih are:
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Researching the framework of SG salaries
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Providing a way to return to civil service (job security) after the SGs five-year term is up
CSC's announcement to seek a total of 46 SGs for atoll and island councils expires on 29 September.
