Beyond reform

This letter refers to the article “Service reforms” (May 20, 2020) by M Saeed Khalid. The writer has analysed the civil service reforms proposed by the advisor on institutional reforms. While raising many valid questions, he has overlooked certain ground realities that are the root cause of the deterioration of our services. We are very fond of carrying out new experiments rather than fixing the existing system, as a result we end up in a deeper mess. The biggest problem in our civil services is cronyism, appointments and promotions are politically motivated and not based on merit.

There is nothing wrong with the concept of a CSS exam, but when you allow cheating and the leakage of papers, no system can work. Without a political culture that values merit, honesty and accountability, no system or proposed reform can succeed. As it stands, our political system is inimically opposed to these values, hence these reforms are unlikely to see the light of day.

Mukhtar Ahmed

Karachi