Name and shame

The press release by BISP listing over 2500 bureaucrats dependent on funds reserved for the poor has shocked anyone who believed in the honesty, morality and ethics of the country’s bureaucracy. However, the failure to make the names public a whole week after the announcement, is creating doubts about the government’s resolve and ability to combat corruption.

The desire of the incumbent government to restore the confidence of bureaucrats is obvious and evident by the personal involvement of the PM in rescuing them from the clutches of NAB. But this should not be a reason to delay the exposure of the corrupt. In fact, the exercise would provide comfort to the many thousands of honest and upright civil servants. The government, if it has the evidence and proofs, must not hesitate to publish the names of the reported Grade 17-21 officers alleged to have been living on the support grant.

Haroon Sikandar Pasha

Islamabad