Fixing the system

Is there hope public officials will be empowered to work interdependently? The Government is seeking to introduce fresh legislation to establish a separate authority to streamline public service through measures such as the formulation of standards and the introduction of a code of best practices and procedures.

A bill has been worked out and will be presented to the Cabinet for discussion by a committee appointed for the purpose by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, local media reported on Monday. The committee is headed by former Justice Ministry Secretary Suhada Gamlath.

If enacted in Parliament after Cabinet clearance, the bill could provide for the establishment of a ‘Public Service Delivery Authority’ with wide ranging powers to monitor standards, quality, efficiency, accuracy, and transparency in the discharge of public service by various State institutions.

The authority, if established, could also comprise the Presidential Secretary or his nominee, the Prime Minister’s Secretary or his nominee, the Treasury Secretary or his nominee, the Secretary to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration and the Secretary to the Ministry of Provincial Councils and Local Government as ex-officio members.

Besides, 13 other members will be appointed by the Constitutional Council. It will have powers to analyse the existing mechanism regarding the delivery of public service to issue guidelines for quality improvement. Another objective of the proposed authority is to identify the needs, shortcomings and difficulties that exist in public sector institutions.

Such a wide ranging authority will likely be welcomed by public officials but for it to be truly effective it will need to have a deep capacity to empower State employees. For decades Sri Lanka has had a calcified system where appointments, promotions and even dismissals are granted at the whim and fancy of politicians and if the public service is to be truly made independent and efficient they must also be given the space to work free from political influence.

A critical aspect of ‘best practices and procedures’ is for public servants to be actively engaged in the development process and for this they would also need to have whistle-blowing powers. Public officials are too dependent on their political bosses and this has undermined the very fundamentals of the public service, creating degradation on a significant scale.

Just during the last year and a half the Wildlife Department head had to resign, the secretary of a prominent ministry was transferred and two prominent ministers were caught red-handed handing out Government jobs to their loyalists. This shows that any attempt to improve standards for public servants has to come with stronger empowerment that will allow public officials to be engaged in the process to make Government more accountable.

A second point to fostering professionalism is the desperate need to root out corruption within the public service. While every public employee is not corrupt they nonetheless hold the entire system to ransom, and even though a public service commission exists to deal with complaints and unfair transfers, there is a dire need for a stronger framework that is seen to work.

The nexus between politicians and public servants is so strong that members of the public would be justified in being sceptical of any new authority until it proves itself.