This is the right time to fight it!
Astoundingly, the stakeholders of present coalition (now a collisional political amalgam) are virtually pulling the carcass of existing defunct administration in all directions to extract whatever is left of it. Not only political unscrupulousness but it is extreme cunningness and no way the politics that our elders used to practise. This fluid situation will have a long term impact on the health of our administrative system. Beyond populistic freebies, politically motivated concessions and amenities the worst part of the present indecent government is flourishing adhocracy. Since long sponsored and encouraged by one and all, the worthless temporary arrangement mechanism has ruined the fundamentals of our administrative system. Earlier it was used as a bypass to install the favorite at key places in the administration but now it has become a routine.
Every administrative unit and department beyond the four walls of civil secretariat is plagued with temporary arrangements. Most of the managerial posts and affairs of heads of the departments in almost all departments are being run by the officers without proper authorization after due process of existing rules and regulations. The big question is what prompts the government, particularly its political leadership to run the affairs of administration on ad hoc basis? There are two fundamental reasons, the inefficiency and the mala fide interests of political leadership. And in most cases it is the bad faith that circumvents all rules and regulations and encourages a loose system of delivery through cronies and nepots. A brief look on the hierarchy of any department will reveal the hollowness within the system. Meekly behaving leadership living under the constant fear of being shown the door of downgrading at any time without any reason is a common sight in almost all administrative units.
Our political leadership with active support of certain unscrupulous elements within the administration has created an atmosphere where nothing other than temporary arrangements of assignment and elevation is encouraged and promoted. A system where assignments are traded against considerations and civil servants made to dance to the tune of politicians and their myopic oligarchy. Coalition has not only encouraged adhocracy but played a vital role in making it a permanent feature of our administration. Transfer of civil servants particularly the executing field officers is a big industry that sponsors a substantial part of the dirty politics. Officers are attached to candy floss strings that can be snaped any time they behave against the wishes of their masters. Such situation brews a sense of worthlessness within the service class and ultimately it upsets their delivery mechanism and efficiency. No particular political class or breed can be accused of adhocracy but almost all politicians resort to such practice and derive maximum out of it.
Adhocracy encourages mediocrity and ultimately the quality of administration. As I said earlier the practice of temporary arrangements is not applicable at the highest seat of power but it is only the lesser mortals of field departments (the real face of administration) who are made to suffer because of political highhandedness and are used as fodder for the political canons. There is no mechanism of answerability, where administrative departments can be asked why they fail to deliver proper cadre management and minimize the ever increasing ad hoc arrangement. Is it that their proximity to the power center and the power brokers gives them absolute immunity and they become accountable to none? You will find smooth and flawless elevation and promotion system in place in this section of the administration: a system where overnight undergraduate typists become gazette officers and ultimately the feeding cadre for prestigious state administrative services. Unfortunately instead of doing their duty of proper human resource management for which they are handsomely paid they always hunt for greener pastures of their own elevation and up-gradation. If mediocrity will be allowed to rule the administrative system through the shortcut of adhocracy a time will come when our administrative system will get ruined the way our political system has gone. Politicians and political dispensations keep on changing and shifting but the system should not get enfeebled because of sycophantic mindset of few unprincipled elements. This is the high and the right time for introspection for every individual even remotely associated with administration and seriously ponder upon the effects of shameful adhocracy.
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