Public Services Bill: PTI prepares to ‘push’ govt machinery for timely action

Officials to be made accountable for any deficiencies in public service.

PESHAWAR:

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led government is set to introduce the Right to Public Services Bill to tighten the noose around bureaucracy and eliminate red tape.

Right to public services

The bill will ensure people receive public services within the stipulated time and with full transparency. People will be able to hold designated officers accountable for any deficiencies in public service. The bill will also enable people to demand compensation from a designated officer for failure or delay in providing timely public service, according to a draft of the proposed legislation available with The Express Tribune.

Specified time limit

On receipt of an application, the designated officer shall provide the public service within the specified time limit or reject the application and record the reasons for rejection.The designated officer must intimate the reasons for rejection to the applicant.



Appellate Authority

The applicant has the right to appeal to the Appellate Authority if his application has been rejected, if he has not received the service within the specified time, or if the public service received is deficient in any manner.

Disposing an appeal

According to the bill, the Appellate Authority shall address the appeal within 45 days from the presentation of the appeal. The Appellate Authority may direct the designated officer to provide the public service within a stipulated time or remove the deficiency in the public service provided to the appellant. It also has the authority to reject the appeal.

Penalty powers

The Appellate Authority shall have the same powers as a Civil Court trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure 1908 for matters concerning the production and inspection of documents, issuing summons for hearing and levying fines on designated officers not exceeding Rs25,000.

Grievance Redressal Commission

The draft also enables an eligible person to present an appeal to the Grievance Redressal Commission within 15 days of the final decision of the Appellate Authority. The commission will hear appeals against the orders of the Appellate Authority and will remedy grievances against public authorities in the province.

The chief commissioner will hold office for five years and will not be eligible for reappointment. He must be a former judge of the Supreme Court or Peshawar High Court, a district and sessions judge for ten years or a former BPS-21 civil servant with expertise in financial arrangements and public administration.

Display of public services

The bill will make it necessary to display details of designated officers, public services and the specified time limits to the general public.

Monitoring the status of an application

According to the draft, every eligible person shall be entitled to monitor the status of his application online and the official concerned shall update the status of the application according to prescribed procedures.

Strengths and weaknesses

Lawyer Muhammad Faheem Wali said the proposed bill is a step in the right direction. “It is a law desperately needed to curtail unnecessary time consumed by government officials in redress of grievances of the general public,” he said.

This law is expected to improve the efficiency of government departments and reduce red tape prevalent in civil services. However, Wali said the law is not free from errors. The limited timeframe provided to each functionary would encourage officials to reject more applications.  Genuine applications may also be rejected as a result, owing to time constraints.

Additionally, the location of the commission has not been specified and will probably be based in Peshawar. Wali said this will cause further hardships for people living away from the capital.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 29^th, 2013.