Negligence in service delivery cannot continue

DAR ES SALAAM: WE must admit it that public office is a position of trust. Citizens pay taxes and entrust government institutions with the responsibility of delivering essential services efficiently, professionally and with compassion. Unfortunately, complaints continue to emerge about some public servants who spend valuable working hours chatting, browsing social media, or idling in offices while members of the public wait for assistance.

The concern was rightly reinforced by the Prime Minister during his recent tour in Iringa, where he met citizens and listened to their grievances. His message was clear: public servants are employed to serve the people, not to frustrate them through negligence, indifference, or unnecessary delays.

Nothing illustrates this concern more painfully than reports that some patients seeking urgent medical care are subjected to bureaucratic obstacles before receiving treatment. If it is true that a patient bitten by a snake was first required to pay admission or consultation fees before receiving emergency care, and later told to purchase unavailable medicine from a distant pharmacy, then such conduct represents a serious failure of professional responsibility.

Healthcare workers take the Hippocratic Oath, which commits them to protecting life and acting in the best interests of patients. In emergency situations, saving life should come before paperwork, procedures, or financial considerations. Delays in treating a snakebite can mean the difference between life and death.

Government leaders must therefore take these allegations seriously and investigate them thoroughly. Where negligence, misconduct, or deliberate disregard for duty is established, disciplinary action must follow without hesitation.

Public servants who repeatedly neglect their responsibilities should face summarily dismissal in severe cases. Supervisors who tolerate chronic negligence within their departments should also follow suit.

At the same time, ministries, departments and agencies should strengthen monitoring systems, conduct surprise inspections and establish accessible channels through which citizens can report poor service without fear of intimidation.

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Citizens deserve better treatments. Government offices, hospitals, schools, and service centres must be places where professionalism, efficiency and respect prevail. Public service is not a privilege for personal comfort; it is a duty to the nation.

The time for excuses has passed and the government must be harsh on this. Every public servant must remember a simple principle: they are there to serve the people and the people deserve nothing less.