Promises | November 18, 2013, 6:45 am

PTI will depoliticize government institutions - Imran Khan

PTI broken

Promise

“PTI would depoliticize the bureaucracy and police if it came to power,” Imran Khan, Chairman Pakistan Tehreek Insaf, stated while  presenting his party’s manifesto during a press conference on April 10, 2013.

The Plan

Khan reiterated the stance during his first speech in the National Assembly. “In KPK, ministers and MPs would be not allowed to appoint their own SHO, DCOs and change the civil servants,” he said, adding, “we will depoliticize the civil services in order to improve the governance system.”

An English news organization, The Nation, quoted Imran Khan as saying “PTI’s manifesto was not based on slogans but it was formulated after deliberations, so there should be no ambiguity about its implementation.”

Background

Khan has said that he believes that the governance system could be improved if led professionaly. Referring to the Karachi law and order situation, he said, “De-politicization of the Sindh Administration, especially the Sindh police, is key to restoring peace in the violence-hit province of Sindh.”

Tracker

“The PTI MPs were pushing me to transfer and promote their near and dear ones to city areas without following legal procedures,” said Dilshad Begum, former district education officer in Swat. “I resisted several times and so they removed me from the position I held,” she added.

Begum claimed that once Mahmood Khan, the Provincial tourism minister, threatened her by phone, saying, ‘I am the government and you are a government servant, do as directed, otherwise we will remove you from your position.’

Recalling a meeting with the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Parvez Khattak, Begum said,  “the CM clearly directed the MPs to not interfere with the office procedures but they did it to further their personal goals without any hesitation.”

Truth Tracker tried to contact Mahmood Khan for comment but his phone was off.

Now, Begum’s post is occupied by Parveen Rehman, who is a cousin of Saleem Ur Rahman, PTI MNA from upper Swat.

Begum is of the opinion that Mrs. Rehman is not qualified for the position, as she claims Rehman didn’t pass the commission exam. “There is a clear verdict that the academic cadre can’t join the administrative cadre,” she said, adding that she would appeal the decision in court.

Saleem Ur Rehman, MNA from upper Swat, told Truth Tracker by phone that Mrs. Rehman was his cousin, but that he played no role in her transfer. Rehman defended his cousin’s posting. “She has been employed in scale 19, which is the basic requirement for the position.”

Rehman acknowledged that people were expecting help in their transfers in exchange for their votes. “We are trying to convince them that we came to change the system not to fix their individual problems,” he said.  He added, “It will take time to change such attitudes.”

Sardar Hussain Babak, the parliamentary leader of ANP in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial assembly, talked to Truth Tracker by phone.“They promised to chalk-out a detailed policy for the transfer and posting of government employees but failed so far,” he said. “Most decisions about transfers in the government sector are based on political favors” for financial compensation.

Mohammad Ali Babakhel, Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Peshawar, took a long leave soon after he took over. According to  media reports, he was not comfortable with the political influence in the police department.

 

Ruling

Analyzing the independent views and apologetic response of the MNA, Truth Tracker believes that the PTI-led provincial government has failed to de-politicize the government institutions.

Author: Most of my experiences were based on emergency and conflict reporting. Just after completing my masters in journalism and Mass communication, I worked as a humanitarian program producer with INTERNEWS Network in earthquake zone for more than a year in 2005. Being a producer of the program, I highlighted voices of the people and connected them with relief organizations. During Swat crises I worked with PACT RADIO as station manager. Establishment of FM radio in militants control area was one of my professional achievement, and with the help of my team, we successfully grabbed audience from MULLAH RADIO (Illegal radio runs by militants). The strategy was useful to encounter their propaganda and give balanced opinion to the local community. Being team leader and in charge of editorial policy in PACT RADIO, my focus was human interest stories and common people problems, especially the problems of IDPs and those who stuck in their homes due to military operation as more than three hundred thousand people stuck in their homes without medical and food facilities. I worked with IMEDIA as radio team leader for tribal area of Pakistan, and currently working as an Executive producer for INTERMEDIA; am leading a radio production team of Khyber Agency of FATA, Pakistan. I also established a local organization "Media Dimensions Swat" our slogan is "education through media". Specialties: I have the creativity to disseminate human interest stories in the light of latest journalistic approaches with international standards. I believe public voices are more attractive and interesting for audience and readers as compared to other piece of journalism. Such creative precedents of my work can be observed at BBC outlook world services. I am proud Alumni of DW- ACKADEMIE , International Center for Journalists (ICFJ), Alfred Friendly Press Fellowship (AFPF) and Daniel Pearl/Saleem Shahzad Fellowship program.
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