Improving governance: No more unnecessary trips abroad, PM tells ministers

Nawaz directed ministers to stay in their offices and attend to parliamentarians

ISLAMABAD:

Federal and state ministers have been restricted from leaving the country for non-obligatory visitations without prior permission from the prime minister.

According to instructions issued by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday, members of the federal cabinet will have to spend time in their offices and meet with lawmakers regularly. The special cabinet will meet on Friday (today) to review the performance of various ministries.



These instructions aim to improve governance and order in the federal government and improve the attitude of federal and state ministers.

A spokesperson for the prime minister said that the prime minister has instructed federal ministers to only leave the country for obligatory visitations. Conferences and meetings which require representation of ministries can be attended by Pakistani diplomats and ambassadors.

Officials in the federal cabinet said that most ministers accepted all foreign invitations sent their way and sought ‘permission’ after they returned. They said the prime minister had now made these visits contingent upon prior acceptance of permission.

Almost all ministries, especially the Ministry for Education, received at least two or three invitations from various countries each month, the officials said. The ministers usually accepted all the invites. Except for Chaudhry Nisar Khan, who is minister for interior affairs, all other ministers took many trips abroad each month, they said. “Sometimes even without the prime minister’s approval.”

The prime minister has now decided to put an end to superfluous trips, they said.

The spokesperson said Nawaz had also taken notice of the ministers’ long leaves of absence from their offices. Several parliamentarians had also complained about not being able to meet ministers.

Nawaz has instructed all federal and state ministers to pay attention to their work and to avoid unwarranted absence from office.



Some members of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz said that several lawmakers had complained to the prime minister and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif about the “arrogance” of ministers in dealing with them. “The ministers are neither found in their offices nor their parliament chambers.”

Last year in December, the prime minister constituted a Public Affairs Unit (PAU) to monitor such complaints and take action accordingly.  National Assembly Members Captain Safdar, Afzal Khokhar, Saud Majeed and Hamza Shahbaz Sharif were tasked with overseeing the PAU. Additional Secretary to PM Malik Hassan Iqbal was appointed secretary.

PML-N members said that the PAU had asked the prime minister to direct ministers to remain in their offices and attend to parliamentarians.

Nawaz called a meeting of the special cabinet on Friday (today) to review the performance of various ministries.

The spokesperson said the meeting’s agenda includes presentation of an audit report on allegedly inflated electricity bills. Members will also review the performance of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, the Ministry of Planning and Reform and the Ministry of Railways.

The meeting was previously scheduled to be held on October 28, but was postponed for Friday (today).

Officials said that the meeting could continue for three days. In case it drags on, it will be continue after Muharram and the prime minister’s visit to China in the first week of November.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 31^st, 2014.