Unilateral pay hikes

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The government's admission that National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) board members unilaterally increased their salaries without the federal cabinet's prior approval is a glaring example of governance that prioritises self-interest over public accountability. The problem is not just the doubtful legality of the exercise, but a question of in what world can Nepra's board members justify raises of around 300%.

The Nepra chairman's salary has soared from Rs790,000 to almost Rs3.25 million per month, while each board member now enjoys a monthly salary exceeding Rs2.94 million, up from about Rs740,000.

While the previous salaries were tied to the highest tier of management pay (MP) scales, the current structure has no precedent and appears to have been decided on a whim. We must also note that the entire argument for having MP scale salaries is to get top talent from the private sector to offer their services to the public sector and perhaps improve the performance of state institutions.

But in reality, a large number of MP scale hires are retired bureaucrats with little to no private sector experience, but deep connections to the corridors of power. Because of this, many MP-scale jobs are nothing more than post-retirement rewards for bureaucrats with connections to the government of the day.

Inexplicably, several roles for which people are nominated, rather than competitively hired, also offer MP-scale salaries, opening the door for political patronage and doling out of questionable unapproved compensation and perks, despite the fact that thousands of competent and qualified Pakistanis would be willing to take these jobs at the officially approved salary levels.

Even in the case of Nepra, it is worth noting that the chairman is a retired bureaucrat, and despite having some power sector experience, none of it was in the private sector. If the Nepra board members really think they deserve such ludicrously high salaries, they should immediately be afforded opportunities to actively seek employment in the private sector.