Imran vows to de-politicise bureaucracy

islamabad — Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday said that the government was committed to depoliticising and insulating the bureaucracy from all kinds of political pressures as it had been heavily politicised during past 10 years.

Presiding over a meeting of the task force on civil service reforms, the prime minister said that the government was resolved to undertake structural reforms in bureaucracy to make it efficient and responsive to the needs of time, a statement issued by the PM Office said.

Imran directed the task force not to hesitate in making bold recommendations in the best interest of the country. He observed that politicisation of bureaucracy in the past had resulted into inefficiency and created fear among bureaucrats.

The prime minister said that till 1970s, Pakistan’s civil service had been considered as the best in the region and officers from other countries used to get training here.

He said the existing government system could not compete with the private sector where positions and seniority were determined on merit, adding that no system could sustain or deliver in the absence of

accountability and merit.

Imran said there was a need to restructure and reform bureaucracy to make it pro-progressive and innovative. There is also a need to promote professionalism in every sphere, he remarked.

He said the government was committed to protecting the integrity and security of the tenure of bureaucrats so that they could devote their energies towards translating the government’s political vision into reality.

The prime minister that governance in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa improved after the provincial government introduced administrative reforms in the bureaucratic set up.

Imran said the country would have to attract the best minds to serve the country as talent was abundant but the existing system did not allow it to flourish.

He said the people having good repute and competence were being inducted in the boards of state-run entities to better serve the masses.

The prime minister said that education and health sectors were of utmost importance and steps would have to be taken to avoid wastage of resources. — APP