Code of Conduct
The overall objective of Code of Conduct is to ensure public accountability by public officials. Generally speaking, Code of Conduct refers to “a comprehensive and systematically arranged collection of laws, regulations and rules of conduct procedure that guide, regulate and direct the behaviour of public officers” (Onyeneho and Okonkwo, 2006). Every public servant and indeed public office holder in Nigeria is expected to abide by the provision of the Code of Conduct for public officers as stipulated in the Fifth Schedule, Part 1 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). For the avoidance of doubt, Part II of the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution defines the categories of public officers for which the Code of Conduct is applicable to. These are:
- The President of the Federation
- The Vice President of the Federation
- The President and Deputy President of the Senate, the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives and Speakers and Deputy Speakers of Houses of Assembly of States, and all members and staff of legislative houses
- Governors and Deputy Governors of States
- Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justices of the Supreme Court, President and Justices of the Court of Appeal, all other judicial officers and all staff of courts of law
- Attorney General of the Federation and Attorney General of each State
- Ministers of the Government of the Federation and Commissioners of the Governments of the States
- Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Naval Staff, Chief of Air Staff and all members of the armed forces of the Federation.
- Inspector – General of Police, Deputy Inspector-General of Police and all members of the Nigeria Police and other government security agencies established by law
- Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Head of the Civil Service, Permanent Secretaries, Directors-General and all other persons in the civil service of the Federation or of the State
- Ambassadors, High Commissioners and other officers of Nigerian Missions abroad
- Chairman, members and staff of local government councils
- Chairman, members of the Boards or other governing bodies and staff of statutory corporations and of companies in which the Federal or State Government has controlling interest
- Chairman, members and staff of the Code of Conduct Bureau
- All staff of universities, colleges and institutions owned and financed by the Federal or State Government or local government councils
- Chairman, members and staff of permanent commissions or councils appointed on full time
Details of the Code of Conduct for public officers in Nigeria –including you and I are as follows:
- A public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts with his duties and responsibilities
- Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing paragraph, a public officer shall not:
(a) Receive or be paid the emoluments of any public office at the same time as he receives or is paid the emoluments of any other public office; or
(b) Except where he is not employed on full time basis, engage or participate in the management or running of any private business, profession, or trade but nothing in this sub-paragraph shall prevent a public officer from engaging in farming
- The President, Vice-President, Governor, Deputy Governor, Ministers of the Government of the Federation and Commissioners of the Governments of the States, members of National Assembly and of the Houses of Assembly of the States, and such other public officers or persons as the National Assembly may by law prescribe shall not maintain or operate a bank account in any country outside Nigeria
- (1) A public officer shall not, after his retirement from public service and while receiving pension from public funds, accept more than one remunerative position as chairman, director or employee of:
(a) a company owned or controlled by the government; or
(b) any public authority
(2) A retired public servant shall not receive any other remuneration from public funds in addition to his pension and the emolument of such one remunerative position.
5. (1) Retired public officers who have held offices to which this paragraph applies are
prohibited from service or employment in foreign companies or foreign enterprises.
(2) This paragraph applies to the offices of President, Vice President, Chief Justice of
of Nigeria , Governor and Deputy Governor of a State.
- (1) A public officer shall not ask for or accept property or benefits of any kind for himself
- or any other person on account of anything done or omitted to be done by him in the
discharge of his duties.
(2) For the purpose of the sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph, the receipt by a public officer of any gifts or benefits from commercial firms, business enterprises or persons who have contracts with the government shall be presumed to have been received in contravention of the said sub-paragraph unless the contrary is proved
(3) A public officer shall only accept personal gifts or benefits from relatives or personal friends to such extent and on such occasions as are recognized by custom:
Provided that any gift or donation to a public officer on any public or ceremonial occasion shall be treated as a gift to the appropriate institution represented by the public officer, and accordingly, the mere acceptance or receipt of any such gift shall not be treated as a contravention of this provision.
- The President or Vice President, Governor or Deputy Governor, Minister of the Government of the Federation or Commissioner of the Government of a State, or any other public officer who holds the office of a Permanent Secretary or head of any public corporation, university, or other parastatal organization shall not accept:
(a) a loan, except from government or its agencies, a bank, building society, mortgage institution or other financial institution recognized by law; and
(b) any benefit of whatever nature from any company, contractor, or businessman, or the nominee or agent of such person:
provided that the head of a public corporation or of a university or other parastatal organization may, subject to the rules and regulations of the body, accept a loan from such body.
- No person shall offer a public officer any property, gift or benefit of any kind as an inducement or bribe for the granting of any favour or the discharge in his favour of the public officer’s duties
- A public officer shall not do or direct to be done, in abuse of his office, any arbitrary act prejudicial to the rights of any other person knowing that such act is unlawful or contrary to any government policy
- A public officer shall not be a member of, belong to, or take part in any society the membership of which is incompatible with the functions or dignity of his office
- (1) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, every public officer shall three months after coming into force of this Code of Conduct or immediately after taking office and thereafter: (a) at the end of every four years, and (b) at the end of his term of office, submit to the Code of Conduct Bureau a written declaration of all his properties, assets and liabilities and those of his unmarried children under the age of eighteen years
(2) Any statement in such declaration that is found to be false by any authority or person authorized in that behalf to verify it shall be deemed to be a breach of this Code
(3) Any property or assets acquired by a public officer after any declaration required under this Constitution and which is not fairly attributable to income, gift, or loan approved by this Code shall be deemed to have been acquired in breach of this Code unless the contrary is proved.
12. Any allegation that a public officer has committed a breach of or has not complied with
the provisions of this Code shall be made to the Code of Conduct Bureau
- A public officer who does any act prohibited by this Code through a nominee, trustee, or other agent shall be deemed ipso facto to have committed a breach of this Code
- In its application to public officers:
(a) members of legislative houses shall be exempt from the provisions of paragraph 4 of this Code; and
(b) the National Assembly may by law exempt any cadre of public officers from the provisions of paragraphs 4 and 11 of this Code if it appears to it that their position in the public service is below the rank which it considers appropriate for the application of those provisions.
(Culled from the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, (1999, as amended).
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
One major characteristic of the public service is the stability of tenure of its personnel. It is expected that bearing any form of misconduct, accident, disability or death, a public servant is expected is to work till he or she attains retirement age. This is diametrically antithetical to what is obtainable in private sector where an employee can be hired today and fired tomorrow even without any misconduct or wrong doing. For us therefore, to enjoy this special public service privilege, it is expected of us to abide by all the provisions of the Public Service Rules, Code of Conduct for public Officers, Circulars, directives, and indeed other regulations.
Now that you have been officially told the dos and don’ts of this place and indeed all other public institutions in Nigeria, the ball now is your court. It is recommended therefore, that each and every one of you should have copies of the latest edition of the Public Service Rules and Code of Conduct for Public Officers or the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. They are Bibles of the public service and should be read, studied and obeyed in the same manner Christians do with the Holy Bible and Moslems with the Holy Koran.
Be a good public servant!
Be a conscientious public servant!
Be an instrument of public service delivery!
Be an exemplary public servant!
Thank you.