Admin loses its trail to reforms

Continues to get overcrowded as politics calls the shot

M Abul Kalam Azad

The Awami League-led government gave bureaucrats wholesale benefits to please them over the last five years, but did little to fulfil its pledge to make the civil administration efficient, accountable and transparent.
Around 2,600 officials were promoted since 2009, and that was done not on the basis of merit and performance, but on political consideration, lobbying and pressure from different quarters, said officials at the secretariat.
According to the public administration ministry, there are currently 1,316 deputy secretaries against 830 posts, 928 joint secretaries against 250 posts and 334 additional secretaries against 120 posts. Besides, three secretaries have been kept as officers on special duty.
And yet, 85 joint secretaries were promoted to the rank of additional secretary, a day after the new government took office on Sunday, making the civil administration top-heavy.
Such practices have encouraged bureaucrats to indulge in politics and stay loyal to party men to secure lucrative positions, whereas they ought to implement government policies and programmes being free from political influence and interference, said the officials.
“Excessive promotions have damaged the ideal pyramid structure of the administration and made it top-heavy. The number of officials is three to four times the posts mentioned in the organogram,” said a senior bureaucrat, asking not to be named.
The government failed to keep its promise to bring about reforms and enact laws to make the administration merit-based and service-oriented, said the official.
The draft of the Public Servants Bill, 2012, still rests with the Prime Minister's Office for the PM's approval.
Cabinet Secretary Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said one of government's major policy decisions was to bring reforms in the civil administration.
"We have to mobilise support within the government and the civil bureaucracy for bringing about effective and sustainable reforms … The reform move has not been abandoned, but slowed down.”
The cabinet secretary said promotions had been given mostly on the basis of reputation, efficiency and integrity of an official.
He also claimed bureaucrats have become more pro-people and service-oriented.
Of around 1.3 million government employees in the country, more than half are class-III and IV employees, and the rest are first and second class officers.
Government moves such as renaming the establishment ministry as public administration ministry, and extending public servants' retirement age from 57 to 59 years and that of freedom fighters to 60 years, and the new pay scale for bureaucrats had very little to do with the envisioned reforms.
Following strong lobbying, the government promoted five secretaries to senior secretaries. It only benefited the officials but did little to bring qualitative changes in their service.
Many efficient bureaucrats, who hoped to see reforms in the administration, feel very disappointed now.
The Daily Star talked to a number of senior and mid-level bureaucrats to understand why the government shifted away from its reform move.