In this text, the author made attempt to dissect the imperativeness of Rules and Regulations as panacea for effective service delivery, especially in the modern welfare states. The book is divided into four broad parts with chapters under each part discussing related issues. Part one presents an overview of civil service, part two x-rayed the structure of the Nigerian public service; part three considered the public service tradition where the issues of leave, discipline and retirement as practised in the Nigerian context were exhaustively dealt with, while part four focused on the dynamics of public service reforms launched in Nigeria by successive regimes. From one chapter of the book to the other, there is a systematic presentation of facts that support the thesis that no government can achieve any meaningful development without a functional public service guided by established code of conduct, discipline being the bottom line for pursuit of development oriented administration. The book should be of interest to students of public administration and those of Nigerian Government and politics, policy makers, public servants and those who desire to hold public trust.