State suffers amid constant tussle between elected, selected

"The political elite has manipulated the system to the extent that they watch the interests of their clients, i.e. voters, and thus undermine those who are to protect merit, i.e. officers"

Some critics have said that a society that is devoid of self-regulation cannot experience bureaucratic rigmarole. It is a matter of concern for all as to how civil services can be motivated to deliver without compromising external pressure. Besides enhancing the calibre and capacity building of officers there must be an arrangement to check political interruptions.

After former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had quashed constitutional protection to the superior services, officers often had to either be subservient to the political elite or act as stooges.

After that the supreme institution as a whole weakened to the extent that the political bosses started manoeuvring the officers.

The political governments have other tools too like the power to appoint and transfer officers to any post at any time. The chief executive has also the power to initiate an enquiry, surrender any officer to the federal government or punish them. The misuse of this power usually leads to postings of submissive officers in key positions.

Moreover, the discretionary powers vested in the chief executives or heads of the government also forced the officers to act under the directives issued by the bosses compromising others’ rights. Many political heads usually use these tools to manipulate officers to serve their interests rather than the interests of the state. When an officer finds that his seat was in danger he compromises merit, rule of law and even his performance.

The Cultural Revolution in China after widespread rebel attacks on government institutions characterized it to deter the penetration of bourgeois. The same was true of the United States where two researchers investigated democracy concerning political tools during the governments of presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. The research reflected that the appointments were the most crucial tool of political control on the officers. The solution these scholars presented was to reshape the political control of the bureaucracy to avoid misuse of authority.

But, in Pakistan, the elite is all in. It has the driving force. The political elite has manipulated the system to the extent that they watch the interests of their clients, i.e. voters, and thus undermine those who are to protect merit, i.e. officers. Consequently, this tussle between the elected and the selected has crashed the system, and the state suffered.

A senior officer said that the bureaucratic reforms, overhauling of the criminal justice system and accountability of officers have become a myth. He said that the International Monitory Fund (IMF) has also demanded the Pakistani authorities put an accountability drive on the priority list. He said that the existing paraphernalia and legacy of the British colonials were devised to strengthen and prolong their illegitimate rule.

All focus of the consecutive governments remained on the construction of highways, motorways and projects that could never prove an asset but rather a liability.

All the governments both political and dictatorships claimed to reform the system but couldn’t.

Some critics have said that a society that is devoid of self-regulation cannot experience bureaucratic rigmarole. It is a matter of concern for all as to how civil services can be motivated to deliver without compromising external pressure. Besides enhancing the calibre and capacity building of officers there must be an arrangement to check political interruptions. An analyst was of the view that people usually go to deep-rooted mafias sitting in the public offices. He said that only political will with a strategy to bring reforms in the system to resolve the public woes could carry the nation forward. He said that there must be an operational system of appraisal, performance assessment and evaluation. The need is to focus on meritocracy, improve the delivery mechanism and ensure that the public-oriented policies are fruitful.

All honest, dutiful and hardworking officers should be honoured by posting to important positions. The politically managed postings must be discouraged.

There should be a policy to ensure tenures of officers so that the sword of political transfers and postings could be avoided as the apex court had truly noted in the famous Anita Turab case. Punjab Chief Secretary Kamran Ali Afzal should also take notice of undue postings of officers. He should focus on the internal accountability of officers and reduce political interference besides strengthening anti-graft moves.