Improved Governance

Improving governance is not a rocket science though, yet it seems so in Pakistan perspective. Apart from previous attempts till date by the various civil and military rulers, the incumbent PML(N) has also deputed best of her available brain for reforming the governance structure. To an extent of satisfaction, every regime accurately diagnosed where the problem rests but the prescription of remedy has varied from government to government. From Civil Service reforms of ZA Bhutto to LGA and Police Orders of Pervaiz Musharaf through his crusader Tanvir Naqvi everyone came up with altogether different formulae for the purpose but none of them worked. Now this gigantic task has been assigned to Ehsan Iqbal. After years long deliberations He is aiming to introduce a new service cadre 'Executive Service of Pakistan'. After going through proceedings of this new idea, a verse from Mir Taqqi Mir Poem seems so much relevant to it;

میر کیا سادہ ہیں، بیمار ہوئَے جس کے سبب         ----    اسی عطار کے لونڈے سے دوا لیتے ہیں

It is evident from the attempts of every ruling regime that they have rightly considered Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) as a bottleneck and hindrance in implementation of their reforms agenda but PML(N) has relied upon PAS to reform PAS and they have put the idea of creating a new service comprising executives amongst them. How illogical and impractical this approach is! To the best of my understanding nothing as such required for improving governance. Instead below mentioned steps can guarantee achieving objectives. 

Every civil servant strives for rational service structure with fair chance of career progression, just policy for posting and transfers and few of basic facilities including conveyance, housing, health & education for his dependents. For an instance, if the government could ensure

• Recruitments shall be made in specialized categories and the whole of one's service shall be restrict to that very category. His experience, investments in his capacity building by the government shall also be restricted to that category. This will solve the problem of unavailability of  experience hands once for all.
• Every civil servant shall have 5-6 steps of promotion during his career on the basis of performance-cum-fitness-cum-seniority instead of seniority-cum-fitness. Basing seniority only for the promotion is an unjust and illogical approach. If one has managed to enter the service earlier, by whatever mean he did so, will stand first till the end is not a just approach at all. Performance should be given maximum weightage.  
• Postings shall be made on rotational bases under a defined formula i.e. in every scale each of the servant shall serve in given service areas for certain periods and get transfers in a systematic way to the other service area.
• Every civil servant, in accordance with his pay scale, shall have the opportunity of availing conveyance facility. Car/motorcycle financing, in collaboration with any commercial bank, can address this issue without employing additional resources of public exchequer.
• Instead of paying medical allowance to the employee, government may enter into a contract with a leading insurance/takaful company for the purpose of medical coverage as being done across the globe. Same can be done for education facilities as well.
• An own house on retirement, is the dream of many civil servants. For making this dream come true, many indulge in malpractices as well.  If, at the entry into the service, certain amount is deducted from every civil servant on the analogy of GP/CP Fund and invested in housing schemes, house can be given to the civil servant on his retirement. 

Why each of the ruling regime try to reinvent the wheel? Nothing of the proposed items is new and impractical. Alike things are already enforced in armed forces of the country. Have anyone ever noticed posting/transfers/promotions issues in the Army? If such can be enforced in armed forces why not in civil services.

Dear Ehsan Iqbal sb, enforce these proposals rather replicate the structure of armed forces in civil service and you will never have a structure problem in the governance system again, I guarantee.