Smart government — harder than it looks

Even as a new digital age is upon us, governments in Pakistan have been reluctant to use technology to put citizens in touch with all its departments out of fear perhaps that any such interaction would be ugly, unpleasant and serve more to expose the inefficiencies and weaknesses of government. Of course the exact opposite is true. The Pakistan Citizens’ Portal (PCP) launched by the prime minister on Oct 28^th is an important leap forward in the ongoing effort to close the gap between citizens and government departments, especially those that provide public services. Be warned though that the avalanche of public complaints is unlikely to be anything but poison-tipped, ceaseless and relentless. Such is the burden of decades of unanswered complaints and unaddressed grievances.

The central argument behind the PCP is not merely to adopt a wiser and more sagacious approach to technology but also assist us in becoming open, transparent, accountable and human—qualities that can best help forge a spirit of understanding between people and those supposed to provide or deliver services. It is a two-way channel and by virtue of it one hopes the public gets first-hand knowledge of the obstacles that also lie in the path of the government in, say, redressing grievances and fixing the system. As of now the prime minister’s office will itself handle troubleshooting in case the grievance redressal system does not work properly or promptly. This is commendable but surely a little impractical since the head of government is already busy and weighed down by his heavy responsibilities. Instead a point-person or a designated troubleshooter could be appointed to oversee and coordinate complaint redressal operations.

Perhaps the PCP’s greatest utility to the PTI-led government is adding on improvements and determining patterns in the way people engage with services. Party officials will discover (if they want to in the first place ) that technology can make them more familiar with the needs of the common people and enable them to deliver more focused services.

The portal’s success can only be measured by the degree of responsiveness shown to public opinion and the zeal to address all grievances—big or small — to the satisfaction of citizens. May that zeal be with us!

Published in The Express Tribune, October 30^th, 2018.

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