Daily Times

As many as 4,000 Provincial Management Service/Provincial Civil Service (PMS/PCS) officers of Pakistan have affirmed their commitment to promote good governance and efficient public service delivery all across Pakistan and to continue performing their duties diligently.

This was said in a resolution which was passed in the seminar on Civil Service Reforms held at a local hotel, on Sunday, under the auspices of All Pakistan Provincial Management Service Officers Association.

Representatives from PMS bodies of all the four provinces attended and expressed their opinions in the seminar. Moreover, representatives of federal services including Secretariat Group, Pakistan Audit & Accounts Service, Internal Revenue Service also attended the seminar and appreciated the efforts of All Pakistan PMS Association for highlighting the real issues and challenges.

On the occasion, PMS/PCS officers further expressed the hope that the newly elected political administrations at the federal as well as the provincial levels shall uphold the promised high ideal of Rule of Law. It is further hoped that any reforms in the civil service structure shall take place strictly within the constitutional framework. They said that we being the largest civil service group of Pakistan, welcome change and as agents of change, want to play our due role in the process of civil service reforms. However, the constitution and Terms of Reference of the task force on civil service reforms by the federal government being non representative and biased towards 4,000 PMS/PCS officers, is a cause of concern for PMS officers all across Pakistan.

Speakers further said that shockingly, there is not even a single PMS/PCS officer in the task force, the TORs of which include the reformation of provincial and district services. It is overwhelmingly dominated by the District Management Group (DMG) in the form of serving and retired DMG/CSP officers. Even Salman Akram Raja, who is the counsel for DMG in the Constitutional Petitions in Supreme Court, filed by the PMS officers of all the provinces of Pakistan, is a member of the task force but the 4,000 PMS officers of Pakistan have been deliberately ousted.

They said that through this resolution we requested Prime Minister Imran Khan for the revision of TORs of the federal task force on civil service reforms to the extent of provincial services. Participants also requested the creation of provincial task forces to reform provincial civil services as TORs in federal task force pertaining to provincial and district services are not in line with the spirit of the Constitution. Article 240 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, enunciates that “the appointments to and the conditions of service of persons in the service of Pakistan shall be determined” and in the case of the services of a province and posts in connection with the affairs of a province, by or under Act of the Provincial Assembly. Accordingly, if required, the provincial legislatures may formulate their respective provincial task forces to reform provincial services at the provincial and local level.

However, if it is decided otherwise, the PMS, through their representative bodies, at least two officers from each province, should be included in the federal task force to provide their input, based on their extensive experience in the field as well as the secretariat. Any reform/change initiative, without the inclusion of the PMS officers, who are the major stakeholders in the process, shall not achieve the desired/perceived results.

The unconstitutional IPCC formula of 1993, devised by the caretaker regime of former prime minister Mueenuddin Ahmed Qureshi, violated Article 240 of the Constitution of Pakistan. Through the unconstitutional IPPC formula, 700 DMG officers have earmarked for themselves 5,000 posts across Pakistan including provincial posts.

Resultantly, a huge number of posts remain vacant leading to inefficiency of the public sector. Often the simplest solution is the best solution. We are a highly codified society but lack implementation.

We, all 4,000 PMS/PCS officers earnestly entreat the PM to abolish the unconstitutional 1993 IPCC formula and to introduce reforms in line with the true principles and spirit of federalism based on provincial autonomy, the officers said.

Speakers added that we are committed to strive for our legal and constitutional rights. We also resolve that if our just demands are not met, we will raise our voice against all unconstitutional steps at every possible forum. Moreover, the Constitutional Petitions #52/10 to #56/10 and #53/11 shall be vigorously pursued by the respective provincial bodies in order to ensure the enforcement of the constitutional framework of federalism and provincial autonomy.

Published in Daily Times, September 17^th 2018.