Daily Times

The enthusiasm of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led government to bring about revolutionary changes in the existing system of governance is reminiscent of military coups. Dictators tend to curse the previous governments’ ineptitude, while introducing reformist agendas to rid the country of all that had been ailing it since its inception. However, the eagerness to civilianise and legitimise the rule by roping in a group of opportunist politicians and bureaucrats, has proven to be a stumbling block. The reformist agenda, has become a victim to the whims of a few. Hence, we see that the revolutionary changes recommended by these regimes, have not seen the light of the day.

The PTI government also faces similar issues of legitimacy vis-à-vis the alleged rigging at the general elections. The vested interests of the coalition partners at the centre and in Punjab, could impede potential reforms. Nevertheless, being an elected government, PTI has a clear advantage over the previous military regimes. It has to address the concerns of the opposition parties regarding the elections sooner rather than later. Moreover, at the same time, they have to keep the coalition partners in the loop, the focus on reforming the governance system has to be on fast track.

Only time will tell, how the government will manage to sustain the austerity drive initiated by the Prime Minister himself, and how proposals made by the various task forces are to be implemented.

The focus on reforming the Civil services has also resurfaced, with a person like Dr Ishrat Hussain at the helm. His recently launched book, ‘Governing the Ungovernable: Institutional Reforms for Democratic Governance’, has clearly identified that Pakistan’s low economic growth since 1990, can be attributed to the lack of institutional reforms, rather than external factors like security issues and terrorism. Dr. Ishrat’s views regarding Civil Service reforms and inter alia, the introduction of a National Executive Service (NES) are known to everyone.

NES envisages a lateral entry in the service. Individuals who have specialised technical and management skills should be encouraged to occupy mid-level management posts in the government. This would give an equal chance to mid-level private professional/technocrats to have a share of the pie, whilst enriching the civil service with the wealth of technical knowledge and expertise. Specialised teams should also be inducted in the field of Economic Management, Social Management and General Management to occupy key government posts, this would prove to be instrumental in increasing the productivity of the existing bureaucracy.

Dr Ishrat Hussain who launched his book;”Governing the Ungovernable: Institutional Reforms for Democratic Governance”, has clearly identified that Pakistan’s low economic growth since 1990, can be attributed to the lack of institutional reforms, rather than external factors like security issues and terrorism

A similar structure exists in the judiciary of Pakistan, albeit with its inherent flaws, due to the lack of focus on proper induction, promotion and accountability. Whilst young lawyers, with a couple of years’ experience, can become civil judges/magistrates (BS-17), after passing an examination. Moreover, experienced lawyers can also seek lateral entry at the Additional district and sessions Judge (BS-20) level, through an examination. However, the third tier consists of lawyers inducted directly, meeting the minimum age requirement and the length of practice needed to enter into the superior judiciary. The majority of these inductions are solely dependant on kinship and nepotism.

A similar third tier can also be planned for the civil service, whereby certain exceptional minds can be inducted into the service without having to go through the rigour of a competitive exam. As extraordinary individuals usually do not seek high offices, thus they would not go through the hassle of passing an examination.

Nevertheless, other entry procedures like interviews and psychological tests, should be conducted in adherence to a strict eligibility criteria for both the government as well as the judiciary. Similarly, rather than introducing a new service with the name of NES and requiring all existing civil servants to pass a new exam; the continuity of their service ought to be ensured with a ratio of 30:70 in favour of the lateral entrants. Existing civil servants who are not promoted shall retire as is the case in Pakistan Army.

While, the government focuses on institutional reforms, the Chief justice of Pakistan, in collaboration with other Justices should pay attention to reforming the judiciary. A reliable entry system which focuses on merit and merit alone, is the need of the hour. One hopes and prays that the incumbent Chief Justice of Pakistan takes up this challenge with the same gusto, he showed in reforming the legal education.

Therefore, inconsequential issues like the use of helicopter for official visits should not be the focal point right now. However, what matters most to the poor citizens of the country is the substance and not the form of governance. Ordinary citizens do not care about where the Prime Minister resides, how many cars he uses, or what is the total cost per kilometer of his air travel, as long as their basic needs are met. This is what the ‘New Pakistan’ should entail — nothing more, nothing less.

The writer is an Advocate in the High Court; and can be reached at naumanqaiser@gmail.com

Published in Daily Times, September 9^th 2018.