An effective feedback system needs to be developed; public servants need to be held accountable for their performance.
This is with reference to the article “Reforming the civil service” by Fahad Rafique Dogar (June 27). Civil servants prior to 1973 had constitutional protection with respect to their security of tenure. It was Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who did away with these protections and made way for his political cronies through enabling their lateral entry into the civil service. The bureaucracy was further politicised when General Ziaul Haq introduced the concept of inducting army officers into it without passing any written examination. During the 1990s, the bureaucracy was a mere tool in the hands of politicians. However, some of this changed after the Supreme Court’s judgment in the Anita Turab case. Now the government cannot transfer any civil servant without cogent reasons. So, independence and de-politicisation of bureaucracy is well on its way. Regarding the change in the induction process, the Federal Public Service Commission has recently introduced a screening test, which will judge candidates’ intelligence and general aptitude, and discourage the infamous learning by rote system.
However, there are some areas that need special attention of the government, which need to be implemented to improve the service delivery of the bureaucracy. The government needs to do away with the current promotion and salary structure; instead, it should follow the Malaysian model, where a matrix salary structure has been introduced and promotions and increments have been linked with performance. Those who perform well are given more perks and privileges than those who perform below par. Moreover, promotions are not linked to seniority but to leadership, innovation and accomplishments.
Finally, an effective feedback system needs to be developed; the public servants need to be held accountable for their performance. The citizen’s charter of Malaysia can be implemented here also. In this charter, each public office mentions the services being provided by it and the average time that it takes to provide each service. This message is pasted in different places within the office. Now, if a citizen is not satisfied with the service delivery of any particular office, he can complain to the ombudsman office, which will take remedial action and, if necessary, will punish those responsible for inaction. The whole model of public service needs to be revamped. The first step can be taken by following the abovementioned steps to alleviate the sufferings of the general public.
Omer Butt
Published in The Express Tribune, June 29th, 2013.
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