Reforming the federal and provincial civil services has been the most exciting and challenging chapter of the PTI’s tenure, both at the center and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).
It is an established fact that the civil service structure has only deteriorated over time. No serious, concerted efforts have been made to improve the structure of the engine of our federal and provincial bureaucracy. Lofty promises of merit-based recruitments have been designed by many parties to attract voters. But these parties are often unprepared to deal with the reality of the challenge when they are actually in power. And so, the product of their half-baked attempts are ill-trained, unhelpful and discourteous civil servants.
Recently, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Public Service Commission (KPPSC) made a disconcerted and misplaced attempt to make the recruitment process merit-based. It tried to introduce 25 candidates per seat policy for the screening test of PMS 2021. The new policy was endorsed on March 9, 2021, whereas the advertisement for the posts of PMS was announced on February 25, 2021 which makes it non-binding on the ongoing examinations, as it completely contradicts the KPPSC regulation clause XIV (39) which states that: “Any amendment made in these laws would have prospective effect (taking effect or applicability).” Doesn’t the new rule of 25 candidates per seat make it ab initio? Did the KPPSC and its relevant body carry out any homework before making this move? What kind of brainstorming sessions were involved? Does the KPPSC carry out detailed studies to measure the pros and cons of this anti-merit rule? What goals did it set to achieve with the implementation of this new recruitment process? The passing criteria in Sindh is 50 percent while the preliminary exam of UPSC in India sets the bare minimum criteria of 33 percent . So, the 25 candidates per seat policy of KPPSC is unprecedented.
During my telephonic discussion with a senior government official, I was told that the rationale behind the PMS screening test was to relieve the burden on the KPPSC in terms of the exam and the stationary. Quality control is not the aim of this strange exercise. He further stated that the recruitment process is the starting point of the rot in the structure of the civil bureaucracy. The current model of recruitment is completely out of sync with the job description. Does the KPPSC listen to such sane voices?
Another provincial civil servant made some insightful comments in his tweets about the current screening test system. “Screening test at first phase is a standard format everywhere, however, it is based on analytics, comprehension, numeracy, logic and writing skills. If this format is to be introduced, it should reflect the best standards at international level.” What kind of screening process does the KPPSC want to carry out, 25 candidates per seat? Is it the best yardstick to filter the best and the brightest candidates?
Good recruitment is vital for every department or institution; locating the right people for the right tasks at the right time. It guarantees that the workforce has the required skills and abilities for the organisation’s existing and future needs. Effective resourcing is not just about filling an immediate vacancy, but about having an impact on the long-term success of the business, using workforce planning, and field data to understand what skills are needed for the departmental performance.
Does the current KPSC recruitment process or tools meet the demands of management skills, the administrative cadres? Isn’t the current system of examination of PMS and other provincial cadres outdated? Why can’t the KPPSC abandon it altogether and put in place an efficient and modern, fair and transparent system of examination? The provincial bureaucracy is responsible for implementing government policies. If the system of recruitment does not change, and fails to ensure transparency and fairness, the KPPSC as an institution is bound to lose its credibility.
The current system in practice does not take notice of the relevant intelligence and the essential job description. It ensures and strengthens the practice of memorisation, promotes rote learning in the candidates. What practices does the KPPSC employ to attract a wide range of candidates? Does it ensure inclusion and diversity in the recruitment process? Does the KPPSC regularly review its recruitment policy to make it more relevant, inclusive and to remove the outdated practices?
Then, in the blink of an eye, the KPPSC revised its outdated recruitment policy and came to the conclusion that 25 candidates per seat policy is the best way to attract the brightest candidates. Bravo! Did it even make an effort to consult a broader constituency supporting reform?
For provincial civil service reform efforts to succeed, there is a need to create a broader base for reforms within the province. Discussions and debates must move beyond the offices of the CM, governor, minister of finance and international donors in order to create a wider constituency that recognizes the burgeoning crisis in the provincial civil service and supports a reform agenda. While there is a strong public perception that the bureaucracy is inherently corrupt and inefficient, this has not yet created a strong base vying to reform the structure of the very process, system that does the induction. This is due in part to the many people with influence both inside and outside of the bureaucracy who benefit from this corruption and inefficiency, as well as the broader perception that the bureaucratic function of providing jobs is just as important, if not more important, as the provision of services.
There are several ways in which greater public support could be generated for civil service reform. The increasingly dominant role of electronic media and the ubiquitous nature of the social media platforms in Pakistan in informing and influencing public opinion provide perhaps the best opportunity to raise greater public awareness regarding the crisis confronting the provincial civil service. Pakistani academic institutions and think tanks could also be supported to develop stronger research and analytical capacity in the area of public administration reform. More resources also need to be devoted to carefully targeted information campaigns to better inform and convince key constituencies, including provincial parliamentarians, the media, political parties, the private sector, the aspirants and NGOs, about the importance of provincial civil service reforms.
Unless awareness of the crisis confronting the provincial civil service is better communicated in Pakistan, and the pressure for the recruitment process reform comes from within the provincial stakeholders rather than being imposed by international donors, its chances of success will be slim.
Reforms without investing sufficiently in understanding the social, cultural, educational and political contexts within which the civil service functions can produce cosmetic results. The 25 candidates per seat screening test policy reflects this attitude on part of the KPPSC.
For the system to work, the KPPSC must be completely transparent and trusted by everyone. The current massive protests by the PMS aspirants against the unjust screening test policy must act as a lesson for the reform agenda of KPPSC. It must set the bare minimum threshold for the screening test of PMS 2021.
Screening test is meant to set a bare minimum level to let candidates appear for the actual exam, and not become the final exam itself. For many of the candidates, this might be the last chance to appear for this examination and get a chance to serve their country. This should not be stripped away from them in the name of a screening test which was only announced after announcement of the exam and hence did not even give enough time or insight to prepare for it properly. It is strongly recommended and encouraged that KPPSC reviews its policy and not apply it on ex post facto basis. Let the candidates appear for the actual exam and let them try their hard work and luck by sitting through the Provincial Management Service examination and not squash their dreams by an ill-conceived screening test.
The above set of recommendations, if implemented seriously, will generate much needed sense of confidence among the ordinary citizens, aspirants of the province, free from a burden of undue pressure on our politicians for chasing the officers of various departments and bring extra gravy to the political parties in power at the Provincial Government.
The writer is a lecturer of English and is associated with the KP Higher Education Department
It is an established fact that the civil service structure has only deteriorated over time. No serious, concerted efforts have been made to improve the structure of the engine of our federal and provincial bureaucracy. Lofty promises of merit-based recruitments have been designed by many parties to attract voters. But these parties are often unprepared to deal with the reality of the challenge when they are actually in power. And so, the product of their half-baked attempts are ill-trained, unhelpful and discourteous civil servants.
Recently, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Public Service Commission (KPPSC) made a disconcerted and misplaced attempt to make the recruitment process merit-based. It tried to introduce 25 candidates per seat policy for the screening test of PMS 2021. The new policy was endorsed on March 9, 2021, whereas the advertisement for the posts of PMS was announced on February 25, 2021 which makes it non-binding on the ongoing examinations, as it completely contradicts the KPPSC regulation clause XIV (39) which states that: “Any amendment made in these laws would have prospective effect (taking effect or applicability).” Doesn’t the new rule of 25 candidates per seat make it ab initio? Did the KPPSC and its relevant body carry out any homework before making this move? What kind of brainstorming sessions were involved? Does the KPPSC carry out detailed studies to measure the pros and cons of this anti-merit rule? What goals did it set to achieve with the implementation of this new recruitment process? The passing criteria in Sindh is 50 percent while the preliminary exam of UPSC in India sets the bare minimum criteria of 33 percent . So, the 25 candidates per seat policy of KPPSC is unprecedented.
During my telephonic discussion with a senior government official, I was told that the rationale behind the PMS screening test was to relieve the burden on the KPPSC in terms of the exam and the stationary. Quality control is not the aim of this strange exercise. He further stated that the recruitment process is the starting point of the rot in the structure of the civil bureaucracy. The current model of recruitment is completely out of sync with the job description. Does the KPPSC listen to such sane voices?
Another provincial civil servant made some insightful comments in his tweets about the current screening test system. “Screening test at first phase is a standard format everywhere, however, it is based on analytics, comprehension, numeracy, logic and writing skills. If this format is to be introduced, it should reflect the best standards at international level.” What kind of screening process does the KPPSC want to carry out, 25 candidates per seat? Is it the best yardstick to filter the best and the brightest candidates?
Discussions and debates must move beyond the offices of the CM, governor, minister of finance and international donors in order to create a wider constituency that recognizes the burgeoning crisis in the provincial civil service
Good recruitment is vital for every department or institution; locating the right people for the right tasks at the right time. It guarantees that the workforce has the required skills and abilities for the organisation’s existing and future needs. Effective resourcing is not just about filling an immediate vacancy, but about having an impact on the long-term success of the business, using workforce planning, and field data to understand what skills are needed for the departmental performance.
Does the current KPSC recruitment process or tools meet the demands of management skills, the administrative cadres? Isn’t the current system of examination of PMS and other provincial cadres outdated? Why can’t the KPPSC abandon it altogether and put in place an efficient and modern, fair and transparent system of examination? The provincial bureaucracy is responsible for implementing government policies. If the system of recruitment does not change, and fails to ensure transparency and fairness, the KPPSC as an institution is bound to lose its credibility.
The current system in practice does not take notice of the relevant intelligence and the essential job description. It ensures and strengthens the practice of memorisation, promotes rote learning in the candidates. What practices does the KPPSC employ to attract a wide range of candidates? Does it ensure inclusion and diversity in the recruitment process? Does the KPPSC regularly review its recruitment policy to make it more relevant, inclusive and to remove the outdated practices?
Then, in the blink of an eye, the KPPSC revised its outdated recruitment policy and came to the conclusion that 25 candidates per seat policy is the best way to attract the brightest candidates. Bravo! Did it even make an effort to consult a broader constituency supporting reform?
For provincial civil service reform efforts to succeed, there is a need to create a broader base for reforms within the province. Discussions and debates must move beyond the offices of the CM, governor, minister of finance and international donors in order to create a wider constituency that recognizes the burgeoning crisis in the provincial civil service and supports a reform agenda. While there is a strong public perception that the bureaucracy is inherently corrupt and inefficient, this has not yet created a strong base vying to reform the structure of the very process, system that does the induction. This is due in part to the many people with influence both inside and outside of the bureaucracy who benefit from this corruption and inefficiency, as well as the broader perception that the bureaucratic function of providing jobs is just as important, if not more important, as the provision of services.
There are several ways in which greater public support could be generated for civil service reform. The increasingly dominant role of electronic media and the ubiquitous nature of the social media platforms in Pakistan in informing and influencing public opinion provide perhaps the best opportunity to raise greater public awareness regarding the crisis confronting the provincial civil service. Pakistani academic institutions and think tanks could also be supported to develop stronger research and analytical capacity in the area of public administration reform. More resources also need to be devoted to carefully targeted information campaigns to better inform and convince key constituencies, including provincial parliamentarians, the media, political parties, the private sector, the aspirants and NGOs, about the importance of provincial civil service reforms.
Unless awareness of the crisis confronting the provincial civil service is better communicated in Pakistan, and the pressure for the recruitment process reform comes from within the provincial stakeholders rather than being imposed by international donors, its chances of success will be slim.
Reforms without investing sufficiently in understanding the social, cultural, educational and political contexts within which the civil service functions can produce cosmetic results. The 25 candidates per seat screening test policy reflects this attitude on part of the KPPSC.
For the system to work, the KPPSC must be completely transparent and trusted by everyone. The current massive protests by the PMS aspirants against the unjust screening test policy must act as a lesson for the reform agenda of KPPSC. It must set the bare minimum threshold for the screening test of PMS 2021.
Screening test is meant to set a bare minimum level to let candidates appear for the actual exam, and not become the final exam itself. For many of the candidates, this might be the last chance to appear for this examination and get a chance to serve their country. This should not be stripped away from them in the name of a screening test which was only announced after announcement of the exam and hence did not even give enough time or insight to prepare for it properly. It is strongly recommended and encouraged that KPPSC reviews its policy and not apply it on ex post facto basis. Let the candidates appear for the actual exam and let them try their hard work and luck by sitting through the Provincial Management Service examination and not squash their dreams by an ill-conceived screening test.
The above set of recommendations, if implemented seriously, will generate much needed sense of confidence among the ordinary citizens, aspirants of the province, free from a burden of undue pressure on our politicians for chasing the officers of various departments and bring extra gravy to the political parties in power at the Provincial Government.
The writer is a lecturer of English and is associated with the KP Higher Education Department