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Download PDF Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed yesterday asked the country’s top bureaucrats to overcome “partisan” concerns and concentrate on holding free, fair and credible upazila and general elections.
“It’s everyone’s responsibility to create an atmosphere conduce to holding free and fair elections,” Fakhruddin told the secretaries at a meeting in the secretariat, according to his Press Secretary Syed Fahim Munaim.
Talking to the secretaries at the closed-door meeting, the chief adviser urged them to play their part to ensure that voters can cast their votes in December without fear.
“We’ll be able to hand over power to an elected government through elections to be held in December if we get your overall cooperation,” Fakhruddin was quoted as saying by Fahim at a press conference later.
Fakhruddin also said it is time for a comprehensive reform programme for the civil service to streamline administrative methods, speed up processes and cut red-tape.
A number of secretaries suggested ways to improve the public service, including immediate implementation of Pay Commission, forming a recruitment commission, and raising retirement age from 57.
Fakhruddin assured them that he will ask the finance adviser to implement the Pay Commission as soon as possible.
The secretaries also criticised the ad-hoc rules for promoting and posting civil servants, to which the chief adviser replied that in a non-political caretaker government all promotions and postings are being made in response to demand.
The civil servants demanded a legal regulatory framework for all postings and promotions.
Fakhruddin said the secretaries should continue to “make proper evaluation of the work of the officials. Apply right persons in the right places. Look carefully at their career planning.”
He said the next democratically elected government would carry out the caretaker government’s ongoing administrative reforms.
The civil servants also urged the chief adviser to sort out numerous state-owned enterprises that continue to incur heavy losses.
Demanding broader opportunities, the top bureaucrats asked Fakhruddin to direct the foreign ministry to work on opening up positions for them in the United Nations system and peacekeeping missions.
The chief adviser also asked the bureaucrats to monitor the prices of essentials and the service sectors during the month of Ramadan.
On the new 100-day employment generation programme due to start next month, he urged the civil servants to ensure that benefits reach all levels of livelihoods.
He said although “the country’s economy is back on track” poverty alleviation remains the central target of the government.
He also lauded the publication of a citizen’s charter by various ministries.
“Formulating and demonstrating the citizen charter is the first step, but its implementation is difficult,” the chief adviser added.
Cabinet Secretary Ali Imam Mazumder also spoke in the closed-door meeting.
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