Need to dump deadwood

The decision to slash government size and abolish departments is a critical first step toward improving efficiency.

Listen to article

The decision to slash the size of the government is on the spot and appreciated. It is a foregone conclusion that Pakistan has a most unproductive bureaucracy entailing an annual expense of around Rs8 trillion, along with pensions and perks. Thus, the abolition and relocation of 65 departments is a first step in the right direction, and the good point is that this time around the beleaguered dispensation has taken the ministries of defence and judiciary by the horns to put them in their rights-size. The decision to abolish 40 entities - of which 28 will be privatised or transferred as provincial subjects - must see to it that deadwood is not retained under any circumstances and a considerate reprisal is conducted to undo any misgivings.

While the strategy is an outcome of sustained calculations and input from several stakeholders, especially reviews from 10 ministries and, of course, under the pressure of the IMF, it should ensure that structural reforms are introduced in the long run. Likewise, the decision to abolish 150,000 vacant posts and outsourcing of gardening and janitor services must be followed with betterment in quality of service and not just cost-cutting. It is roughly estimated that a Rs800 billion per annum cut will be seen if these decisions are implemented. Last but not least, as gazetted officers from grade 17 to 22 come under the spotlight, the government must make sure that duplication of roles is done away with, and the legislation to amend the Civil Servants Act distinguishes the wheat from the chaff.

Pakistan is home to more than 1.92 million federal employees, apart from less than a million provincial recruits. There are several portfolios and autonomous bodies that are good for nothing and they too need to be skimmed. The austerity drive has always been taken with a pinch of salt as people are right in questioning the stashing away of billions by cabinet ministers and parliamentarians in their auxiliary chores. In order to ensure rightful reforms, digitisation of government machinery - free from political wrangling - is indispensable.