Delay in filing FPSC chief post hurting bureaucrats

Post of chairman of federal agency lying vacant since Dec 2022, delaying promotion of civil servants

ISLAMABAD:

The post of the chairman of the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) has been lying vacant for months, delaying not only the promotion of civil servants but also hugely impacting their service and post-retirement benefits.

One of the crucial functions of the FPSC chairman is to head the Central Selection Board (CSB), which is empowered to promote officers of the civil service from basic pay scales (BPS) 19 to 20 and 20 to 21 through its bi-annual meetings.

However, the post of the FPSC chairman has been lying vacant since December 15, 2022 when FPSC former chairman Captain (retd) Zahid Saeed relinquished the post on completion of his term, the FPSC’s quarterly bulletin available on its website stated. No new bulletin has been issued since last December.

A senior bureaucrat, who has worked at the FPSC, told The Express Tribune that financial benefits during service as well as the post-retirement benefits, including pension, are hugely affected if promotion is not given at an appropriate time.

“Financial impact is different for different grades,” the officer said.

“Apart from the difference in retirement benefits, the amount of pension is also affected even if one gets a promotion just a day before retirement.

“Key positions remain vacant when the CSB does not meet on time,” he said, adding that his own promotion was delayed for months.  The officer said promotion from grade-19 to -20 is crucial as it entails different monthly allowances roughly amounting to Rs100,000.

“If the due promotion of an official is delayed just by six months for any reason then he loses that amount. People are routinely affected because of the delays in the CSB meetings but no one really cares,” he said.

Giving the example of India, he said the selection board in the neighbouring country fills posts six months in advance. However, key positions here remain vacant for months despite repeated orders by the courts.

 “Let alone other posts, the office tasked with promoting civil servants has been lying vacant for months now,” he said, adding that one of the reasons for delay in filling the post is that the officers who occupy the position come on deputation on the recommendations of ministers and powerful people.

 “My promotion has been pending for over a year now,” said another senior bureaucrat. “My whole batch got promoted but my case is still pending.”

To add insult to injury, he said, the post of the CSB chairman has been lying vacant for several months now and there is no certainty when the new FPSC chairman would be appointed, when the bi-annual meetings would take place and when people would be promoted.

A couple of other civil servants who The Express Tribune spoke to regretted that those nearing retirement are hugely affected because of delay in the CSB meetings.

They said the delay also affects the efficiency of the government as the work of the bureaucrats gets affected due to delay in their promotions.

“The delay causes a lot of frustration and disappointment among the civil servants,” an officer said.

The FPSC plays an important role in ensuring merit-based recruitment of enterprising candidates to the civil and federal services. The commission assists the government in achieving sustained good governance by providing quality human resources through fair, transparent and open competition.

The CSB is headed by the FPSC chairman and comprises two parliamentarians, secretaries of the cabinet and establishment divisions, provincial chief secretaries, representatives of the federal governments in provinces and secretaries of the ministries concerned.