THE ROLE OF COMMUNICATION PROCESSES IN THE MAANGEMENT OF GOVERNMENT PARASTATALS (A CASE STUDY OF NEPA, ENGU)
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Electricity occupies a strategic position in the social and industrial development of any country and indeed any country in the industrial development of any country and indeed any country in the industrial age (Tnoyoi 1983). He further affirmed that without electricity, economic and industrial activities may be paralyzed. The National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) is a merger of Electricity Corporation ofNigeriaand the Nigeria Dams Authority assigned with the responsibility ofNigeria.
NEPA therefore constitutes a public owned financed and managed electricity institution for the purpose of developing the vastNigeriaprimary electricity resources as well as supplying them effectively to consumers.
The demand for electricity supply is rated high than the supply provided by NEPA. This has led to the irregular supply of electricity provided by the NEPA inNigeriaespecially atEnugudistrict. The significance of electricity is better appreciated when one realize that all manufacturing process on whether scale requires electric power, whether hydro, thermal or nuclear electric carrel. In fact, it can be stated that in most cases, other sectors of the rely on the availability of electricity for its existence and survival. NEPA was therefore established to operate with a focus on special economic and political objectives, which are expected to be met simultaneously. A critical examination of those objectives shows that there are conflicts examination of those that shows that there are conflicts in the simultaneous fulfillment, for example, resources mobilization and revenue generation objectives are pure economic goals, a purely social goals. The combination and pursuance of these goals with spurious harmonization and sometimes shifting ministerial comfort especially on pricing investment and administrative decision create serious management, operation organizational problems.
These problems have reflected in the poor financial returns to investment in NEPA and also poor quality of institutional performance in terms of electricity supply. Interruption at alarming frequencies. Overhead distribution network system, irregular meter reading and billing, illegal connection excessive production cost, irregular equipment servicing and maintenance.
Dike (1988) affirmed that communication is a study of the way in which the exchange of message occurs, the purpose of such message attains its objectives. I n that the basis of communication is for the message sender to be decoded by the received through a fed back.
Whenever, there are two or more person working towards the achievement of a set objective success is naturally unconceivable among the group. Communication as fundamental tool in management has been of primary concern to administer in all human institution. Be it an enterprise as goals of such organizations, these goals are always a grouping of human elements in the organization.
We may have what may be regarded as the supraordinates or the management group and the sub-ordinates who invariably see to the accomplishment of the organizational goals.
These do not in any way exonerate the management group in the task of achieving these organizational goals.
In business management, ideals, objectives, instructions, suggestions have to be exchanged among the management staff for the purpose of planning executing or operating the business polices. This exchange of facts, ideas, opinion or emotions by two or more pointed communication by Shina and Hugali (1977:46). This task of achieving the organizational goals, involved such things like planning, directing, co-ordinating and motivating which can be carried out by the process of receiving, issuing, recording and interpreting the information of facts and figures relating to the varied aspects of business activities. Flippo (1982:419) viewed communication as the act of imparting ideas and making oneself understand by others. He further asserted that managing is getting things done through others, a task which requires the manager to communicate with other people.
From the above task of achieving the goal of organization, it becomes evident that people are instruments to the achievement of organization objectives.
Benard (1938:63) affirmed that communication is a means by which people are linked together in an organization to achieve a common purpose.
Management of an undertaking means unification of skill and efforts of others and their direction necessarily implies transmission of information intended to convey the ideas of what is designed or required to be done.
Also in the words of Allen in Sinha and Miyahi (1977) communication is the sum of all things one person does when he wants to create an understanding in the mind of others.
This would entail the dissemination of information to link all the levels to act upon such information. Taken together what has been delineated above which involves the process of transmitting information as between different levels of authority and among the offices on the same level is communication.
1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEMS
NEPA has experienced and retrenchment and threats of all sorts. This signifies that something is wrong somewhere. Especially in terms of communication process to keep the organization as one body. Despite that the public appear to be loosing confidence in NEPA gradually. These suggest that there are some problems in the establishment some of these problems include:
1. The extend of the adequacy human/non human resources
2. How the objectives are being achieved
3. Dangers of communication gap on productivity
4. How welfare of the staff is cared for
1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. To what extend are the resources available in NEPA Enugu adequate for communication effectiveness?
2. To which extend are the objectives of NEPA being achieved?
3. To which extend do thee communication gap in NEPA Enugu affect its productivity?
4. To which extend has lack of welfare to staff of NEPA affect their productivity?
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The continues economic depreciation which Nigeria has been passing through for some years now, has compelled citizens, industrial and business establishment to survive, it must make profit even marginal profits, one of the significant measures my establishment has been taken the retrenchment of workers retrenchment may be right given the current economic climate, but will it solve the problem of non-profit ability for the establishment?
Most establishments including NEPA is profit oriented. Profitability however, is dependent on high productivity, which in turn depends to a large extent on workers moral.
A number of factors led to high worker’s moral principle among which is effective communication between subordinates and supervisors in the organization. Even the minimum work force left after retrenchment may not maximize its productive capacity in absence of any effective communication system, for workers may feel alienate and thus shows a bad attitude towards the progress of the establishment, even live in fear. The significance of this study therefore lies in the attempt to identifying flows, if any military against effective communication and organizational management effectiveness in NEPA.
The study is also significant in the sense that its findings will help both management and staff of NEPA who are desirous of pin-printing the problems that inhabit their performance apart from the inadequacy of funds for operation.
To the extent that other establishment can fear from finding of the NEPA study. This is also significant at it would open up areas of interest from future researchers.
1.5 THE PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The purpose of the study includes thee following:
1. To find out the extent of the adequacy of resources in NEPA for communication effectiveness.
2. To ascertain the extent to which the objectives of NEPA are being achieve.
3. To determine how communication gap among staff affect the productivity.
4. To find out how management style affects the welfare and NEPA Enugu district productivity.
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Benard C.I (1958): The functions of the Executives Cambridge
HawardUniversitypress.
Bruce H.I. (1924): Up and down the communication ladder”
Haward Business Review vol. 10.
Dike U.I (1988): A textbook of Eduction Technology, Owerri.
Toten Publishers.
