The people of Pakistan legitimately expect that bureaucracy at all levels in the country will be efficient in the performance of their functions, responsive to the needs of the people, perform their functions in accordance with law and without expectation of financial gain.

To the misfortune of the Pakistani people, there was discontinuity of the democratic process. General Tanvir Naqvi recalled from retirement and having little exposure to civil administration of the country set about reforming the system in accordance with what he thought were the aspirations of the people of Pakistan. As Chairman of the now defunct National Reconstruction Bureau he prepared the blue print of his devolution plan. Gen. Naqvi made ineffective attempts to silence the many critics of his plan who were dubbed as relics of the colonial past, agents of imperialist powers. And people with vested interests who wished to maintain status-quo. Although the people of Pakistan had not appointed him as their spokesman he repeatedly claimed that they needed empowerment at the grass root level. His devolution plan aimed at bringing about real democracy rather than sham democracy which was enshrined in the Constitution. This mind set was reminiscent of another Kakul product that Gen. Naqvi may have revered. It was no less a person than Field Marshall Ayub Khan who thought that democracy was not suited to the genius of the people of Pakistan—what they needed was basic democracy. In demolishing the remains of the bureaucratic structure, Gen. Tanvir Naqvi chose not to remember that the basic purpose and role of bureaucracy includes maintenance of effective law and order, promoting the economic and social well being of the people, providing good governance in the form of efficient delivery of services to the common man especially education, health and civic amenities. Bureaucracy was also responsible for collecting sufficient revenue to meet the needs of the federal provincial and local governments. The National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB) had little understanding that at least three of the above functions were also the requirements of national as well as internal security. Poor law and order whether caused by terrorism or otherwise is a threat to national security. The demolishing of the Agency administration in the tribal areas has led to disastrous consequences for the country. The system created by the British lasted for over 150 years in case of Pakistan. It is flourishing in India, Bangla Desh and Sri Lanka. The system mid-wifed by Gen. Naqvi did not survive even his life time.

Bureaucracy is perceived as being responsible for many ills that face the country today. They are held to be lethargic, arrogant, inaccessible and corrupt. At the highest administrative levels they have relied on political patronage rather than their abilities, training and experience. They have yielded to wrong doing by themselves and their subordinates. The weakened moral fibre of bureaucracy at all levels no longer assures the people of Pakistan that they would be administered fairly and justly in accordance with law. Although Pakistan lacked a monolithic bureaucratic structure, the Devolution Plan aimed at fracturing the country’s administrative set-up so that it was no longer in a position to assume an effective role in governance. In this, NRB received support from various donor agencies and the World Bank. The latter began casting aspersions on bureaucracy’s ability to promote order and development. Corruption, inefficiency, bloated size, absence of accountability and resistance to change were portrayed as their distinguishing features. Devolution of power was seen as the solution to the ills that afflicted the country. The Asian Development Bank was quick to lend several hundred million dollars to Gen.Naqvi to implement the devolution plan. Pakistan’s debt ridden posterity has to pay back the loan long after the much trumpeted plan has been laid to rest.

Rational thought now concedes that bureaucracy has had a raw deal since Ayub Khan started the purge. As a consequence of the ill-advised steps taken by successive governments, poor governance has now become a threat to the vital interests of Pakistan. It is widely recognized that economic mismanagement stems from poor governance. It is also directly responsible for the failure to combat internal disorder which poses a grave threat to national security. In the context of Pakistan’s federal system, poor governance is a major factor creating estrangement between the provinces on vital national issues such as the Kala Bagh Dam, the sharing of water resources, the movement of food grains specially wheat and the recent gas load shedding program. Growing poverty or even its continuance at the present high levels has a direct negative implication for the country’s security. It leads to internal unrest which manifests itself in a variety of colors be they ethnic, provincial and sectarian. Most of The District Coordination Officers have neither the ability nor the capacity to deliver good governance on issues affecting the citizens of their district. The recent floods highlighted their limitations. In recent times Pakistan has witnessed mega corruption scandals that have rocked the country. It would do well to recognize the fact that bureaucrats are likely to be corrupt if they are provided an opportunity to indulge in corruption and the expected cost of corruption for the bureaucrat is smaller than the expected gain.

Learned men often remark that bureaucracy at lower echelons of the government is not well qualified and therefore unable to perform. They are also not well paid and are therefore tempted to supplement their incomes through various forms of corruption. The bureaucracy at this level is emboldened by the fact that the opportunity cost of losing a job provided by the state is nearly non-existent and chances of detection and punishment are remote. Bureaucracy at the highest level of state machinery may be well trained and qualified. They are also relatively well paid. In their case, indulgence in corruption can only be explained by rampant political clientelism which provides bureaucracy political protection. If Pakistan has to redeem its honour this collusion must end.

The writer is a member of the former Civil Service of Pakistan.

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