Since her appointment as the chairman of the Federal Character Commission (FCC), Dr Muheeba Dankaka has not hidden her intentions to make the commission the pride of the nation. She has been working assiduously to put in the needed reforms necessary to the achievements of the mandates given to her and members of the commission by the President, Mohammadu Buhari, while swearing them into office.
The chairman has acknowledged in many fora that the federal character commission can do better than what it has achieved and she has since demonstrated her readiness to reform the commission to be an institution that is responsive to the challenges of making our Federal Character principle laws work for the good of all the citizens.
One major areas of reforms she has introduced in the commission that is already changing the narratives for the better is the introduction of the good governance administrative models in the commission. Good governance which is defined as the process of measuring how public institutions conduct its affairs, manage resources and guarantees the realization of its sets objectives in a manner essentially free of abuse and corruption and with regards to the rule of laws was the missing link in the ways things are done in the commission.
It was therefore mandatory for her to entrench a good governance dispensation in the commission if she would have any chance of succeeding and changing the narratives of a commission that was perceived by many as corrupt and inept in the past by many.
She have since her appointment been commended by many for the new positive image emerging for this important agency of government and this is because of the good governance models introduced by her in making the commission business unusual.
To her good governance is the process of decision-making and the process by which decisions are implemented in the commission. As a missing link in the smooth running of the commission and its impacts on the implementation of the nation’s federal character laws, the introduction of the good governance model at the commission therefore emerged as a concept that has become inevitably mandatory for the federal character commission to compare its near effective organizational operational processes with viable options to enhance it’s effectiveness.
Her implemented concepts centres on making the FCC as a responsive commission to meet the needs of the citizens as opposed to the old ways of doing things at the commission. The agency is now measured on a high sets of standard requirements that conforms to its mandates.
Through her introduced good governance regime at the commission since her appointment, the commission now has established it’s internal rules and processes which all its management and staff have taken ownership of to establish its rules and policies to implement and monitor them. This is because, good governance has various essential characteristics and those at the management positions of authority at the commission must have a sense of responsibility, accountability and a means of carrying out checks and balances if they want the agency to be governed successfully and achieve its mandates.
In the commission today, good governance is the watchword and all the management staffs have keyed into it knowing that it is means that would typically lead to the achieving of the goals of the commission in a way that also meets all ethical and regulatory best practices.
In the successful fulfillments of her mission in the commission, good governance is a must and being aware of this to the successful executions of her plans and presidential mandates, she has no doubt that the introduction of the good governance regime at the FCC is the irreducible minimums of policies that would underpins her success in today’s world where expectations around issues of perceptions are necessary.
She has focused also in showing leadership by examples as her success depends and is predicated on strong leadership particularly from a’ lead from the front’ approach by the management of the commission. It is a thing of joy that the board and key management of the commission have all buy-in into this good governance approach regime as it requires their sign-up to an agreed good governance model by recognising the importance of sound governance principles and practices on the commission’s improvements and perceptions by the citizens.
By this good governance regime implemented by the chairman, Dr Muheeba Dankaka, the important first steps in the commission’s journey to good governance has been achieved. She achieved this through;
*Understanding what is good governance?.
*What example of good governance can she implement to guide her own approach?.
*What roles do technologies such as management solutions play in solidifying the commission’s commitments to good governance?.
Muheeba Dankaka’s implemented model of governance regime at the FCC.is one that is participatory, consensus oriented, accountable and transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the rule of laws. This is because of its capacity to minimize the potential for corruption, increasing inclusion and the ability of the commission to benefit from creative thinking and reacts to the needs of the citizens both now and in the future.
She is introducing a model of good governance that believes not only on ownership, but stewardship and taking responsibilities for its principles and having an FCC that is in good shape than she inherited.
These reforms has led to a renew commitment by the management and staffs to good governance and embedding diversity and inclusion from top to bottom and putting in place a framework that covers all the characteristics of good governance regime at the FCC to ensure it covers and captures every aspects of the mandates and tasks of the commission while always demanding good leadership practices.
Today, by this her reforms, many considers the FCC as one or if not the best ran agencies of government in Nigeria because of the work been done by this amazon, Dr Muheeba Dankaka. Truly and to the glory of God, the narratives at the commission is changing for the better.
– Musa Wada writes from Abuja.
