Good intentions

Balochistan Chief Minister (CM) Abdul Malik Baloch certainly appears to have a can-do attitude towards what is unquestionably one of the toughest jobs in Pakistan. We applaud his optimism and his approach to the task at hand and believe that he deserves the fullest of support from the federal government, as well as the other provinces.

CM Baloch’s approach to the job involves creating a more transparent and accountable government focused on service delivery in key social sectors like education and health, while at the same time, ensuring that he maintains cordial relations with federal institutions like the Frontier Constabulary (FC), which holds disproportionate influence in the province. Unlike some of his predecessors, who were satisfied with just blaming the FC for many problems, CM Baloch seems focused on actually working with it to solve the problem.

The chief minister is clearly a more intelligent man than many who have occupied his office in the past, but his shrewdness and pragmatism alone are not enough. He needs a team that can execute the vision for Balochistan that he has laid out in his budget speech and in his interview with this newspaper. And in that, he will need the support of Islamabad and Lahore.

The Balochistan government is desperately short of competent civil servants to the point that, in the past, it has offered to double the salary of any grade-22 officer from the elite district management group of the federally-run Civil Service of Pakistan, who would serve in the province. Unfortunately, most civil servants look upon a stint in Quetta as a punishment assignment and provincial governments are unwilling to let go of the few officers who are willing to take up Balochistan’s offer.

For Balochistan to catch up with the rest of the country, the other provinces will need to be generous with more than just money. For once, Quetta has a talented professional at the helm. He needs other such professionals to succeed, a need which the rest of Pakistan would do well not to deny.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 3^rd, 2013.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.