LAHORE: Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani has said to achieve
the target of good governance, bureaucracy would has to become the
public servant in real sense by refraining themselves form politics.
They have an important role in pulling out the country from the current
crises.
He was speaking to the passing out ceremony at Civil
Services Academy Lahore on Thursday . The probationary officers of the
38th Common Training Programme and 33rd Specialized Training Programme
of DMG were passed out on the occasion .
He said that recently
some disturbing rating for Pakistan on the list of failed States has
appeared .but such ratings are more a result of faulty perceptions
rather than the facts. If all the vital institutions of the state like
parliament, judiciary, executive including the armed forces, media and
the civil society are functioning and alive then the country should
only focus on strengthening these Institutions rather than getting
demoralized.
He said that although it has become a rhetoric for
the past 63 years of our history to say that the country is passing
through very difficult times but today its time to make a reality
check. The reality is that Pakistan today is facing great security
challenges. The difficult situation of our economy has further
compounded them.
Prime Minister said that this dismal situation
has coincided with the country’s move towards a new era of freedom of
expression, democracy and active citizenship. This period brings out
dynamics of its own which are complex and multifaceted. That means that
the State and its institutions have to respond to the needs of the new
era and have to understand that the old ways of responding to crisis
situations will not work anymore.
Gillani was of the view that
ann important dynamic of the new era is that media, civil society and
an independent judiciary that are proactively trying to correct the
course of the society. While rule of law is an important element of
democratic governance, perhaps societal reform is a time-taking
process.
“The reform process is a long arduous path that
requires patience, analytical skills and dispassionate approach. All
Institutions have to play their due role as governance is a shared
responsibility of all state institutions at all levels. Let’s prepare
our nation for that”, PM added.
He said that Pakistan’s state
and society need a continuous effort to understand that interests and
ambitions must always be balanced with ground realities.
He
said that the buzzwords today are Performance, Accountability and Good
Governance. You will have to remain in step with the changes taking
place by continually upgrading your knowledge. An administrative
machinery, which does not respond positively to a progressive change is
liable to be thrown into the dustbin of history.
“The role of
the state and bureaucracies has also undergone significant change from
provider and regulator of goods and services to that of catalyst,
enabler and facilitator. Many areas which were exclusive domains of
public service have gone into the hands of private sector” he added.
He
said that today, the challenges of public service are as great as the
requirements of public service. The first thing that the officers
should always remember is that they have been recruited to serve the
people with humility, dedication and professionalism.
He said
that it is very unfortunate that public perception about civil servants
is distorted as people believe that all civil servants are arrogant,
inefficient and dishonest.
“You have to do your duty as
servants; you are not concerned with this political or that political
party; that is not your business. It is a business of politicians to
fight out their case under the present constitution or the future
constitution that may ultimately be framed”, he added. Online
