Disciplinary action against local government functionaries | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

Disciplinary action against local government functionaries

ISLAMABAD: The Sindh government has strongly opposed a proposal to assign disciplinary powers to Nazims and Naib Nazims against local government functionaries. Rejecting the proposal to create district service as recommended by the National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB) and Civil Service Reform Unit (CSRU) of the Establishment Division, the provincial administration said that such powers would be in violation of the Removal from Service or RSO (Special Powers) Sindh Ordinance 2000, which has overriding effect on all other laws and rules.

Under the RSO, it said, the chief minister is the competent authority, who may authorise an appointing authority to take disciplinary action. Separate rules cannot be framed for local government officials in the presence of the RSO. The response also opposed the provision, which specifies that the provincial government shall not recruit for the posts of district, Tehsil, technical and local cadres, and said these cadres are supposed to have posts of BPS 17 and above.

According to it, this means that the role of the provincial government will be totally eliminated and the powers and control of the provincial chief executive will be reduced to nil with respect to appointment, transfers, postings and disciplinary actions against these posts. Thus, the existing set-up, structure, laws and rules will go completely haywire. The provincial government, the chief minister, ministers and administrative departments will completely loose their administrative authority, which has already been extremely diluted after power devolution.

The document suggested that the issue should be dealt with through framing of rules by declaring various appointing authorities from within the district as well as provinces for various categories of posts. It pointed out that three times special posts allowance has been proposed for district government and district financial cadres. Although the government may generally support the idea of differential pays based on the functions of the posts, yet this clause cannot be supported, as the government itself has to look into the financial and administrative implications and viability of the proposal.

The response said it was next to impossible that the procedure relating to positive performance appointment on deputation in the district and Tehsil and town technical cadres would actually be followed in a transparent manner by any administration and government officers will have to run from pillar to post to get deputation and the process will completely politicise all kinds of appointments in districts and Tehsils. Following is the text of Chapter XVA (relating to district service). 140 A: Establishment of district cadres etc: (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law, rules or contract of service for the time being in force, the government shall establish a district service comprising:

(a) district coordination cadre consisting of the provisional posts of district coordination officer;

(b) district financial cadre consisting of the local posts of executive district officer (finance and planning) district officer (finance), district officer (planning), Tehsil municipal officer and Tehsil officer (finance) of the respective local government;

(c) district technical cadre consisting of all local posts in Basic Pay Scale (BPS) 17 and above of the offices in a district government except the district posts specified in clause (b) of this sub-section;

(d) Tehsil or town technical cadre consisting of all local posts in BPS 17 and above of the offices in a Tehsil or Town Municipal Administration except the Tehsil posts, specified in (b) of this sub-section;

(e) district local cadre consisting of all posts in BPS 1 to 16 in the offices of a district government; and Tehsil local cadre consisting of all posts in BPS 1 to 16 of the offices of a Tehsil Municipal Administration.

(2) The officers from the existing services and cadres may be inducted in the district coordination cadre as follows: (a) percent from amongst federal services; (b) percent from amongst provincial civil servants; and percent from amongst provincial and local council service and cadres including professionals. (Percentage will be discussed with the provinces).

(3) Until specially recruited and trained officers are available, all posts of the district financial cadre shall be filled in from amongst the officers from the existing services and cadres in the following manner: (a) . . . percent from amongst federal services; (b) . . . percent from amongst the provincial civil servants; and (c) . . . percent from amongst others provincial and local council service and cadres, including professionals. (percentage will be discussed with the provinces).

(4) Until specially recruited and trained officers are available, all posts of the district technical cadre shall be filled in from amongst the officers of the existing provincial services and cadres within their technical specialty.

(5) Until specially recruited and trained officers are available, all posts of the Tehsil technical cadre shall be filled in from amongst the officers from the existing provincial services and cadres in the following manner: (a) . . .percent from amongst the officers of public health engineering department; (b) . . .percent from amongst the officers of housing and physical planning department; and (c) . . .percent from amongst the officers of local government and rural development.

(6) The district and Tehsil/town technical cadre posts shall be filled in by any of the following three methods:

(a) by appointment on deputation to a district within the specified BPS and technical stream to which the officer belongs and such officers shall be managed by the government;

(b) by voluntary absorption with the mutual consent of the government and the district or Tehsil/town concerned into a post of the specified BPS for which the officer is eligible and upon such absorption the officers shall be managed by the Human Resource Management Office of the district or General Establishment Branch of the Tehsil/town concerned; and

(c) by initial recruitment in BPS 17 through requisition to the Provincial Public Service Commission by the district government or Tehsil/Town Municipal Administration and such officers shall be managed by the Human Resource Management Office of the district or General Establishment branch of the Tehsil/town concerned.

(7) District financial cadre local posts shall be filled in by the following three methods: (a) by appointment on deputation to a district within the specified BPS and technical stream and such officers shall be managed by the government; (b) by voluntary absorption with the mutual consent of the government and the district or Tehsil/town concerned into a post of the specified BPS for which the officer is eligible and upon such absorption, the officer shall be managed by the Human Resource Management Office of the district and the General Establishment branch of the Tehsil/town; and (c) by initial recruitment in BPS 17 through requisition by the district or Tehsil/town concerned through the Provincial Public Service Commission for posts which officers in clause (a) of this sub-section are not available in the BPS specified for the post and such officers shall be managed by the Human Resource Management Office of the district and the General Establishment branch of Tehsil/town.

(8) The district or Tehsil/town cadres’ posts will be filled in the following two methods: –

(a) upon enforcement of this chapter, the existing employees in BPS 1 to 15 of the respective district or Tehsil/town local cadres shall be absorbed in the respective local government and their management shall vest in the Human Resource Management Office in the district and General Establishment branch of Tehsil/town concerned; and (b) by initial recruitment in the required BPS through requisition to the Human Resource Management Office and General Establishment branch of Tehsil/town concerned.

(9) The district or Tehsil/town cadres posts in BPS 16 shall be managed by the government until such time the post is not filled either by initial recruitment or by promotion of an initial recruit by the Human Resource Management Office and the General Establishment branch in the Tehsil/town concerned.

Provided that posts in BPS 16 may be filled by voluntary absorption with the mutual consent of the government and local government to which the post belongs.

Section 140B: Management and regulation of cadres:

(1) The government shall maintain the lists of all employees in BPS 17 and above in accordance with the functional specialty of the officers on coming into force of this chapter. (2) District government or a Tehsil Municipal Administration may recommend any officer of the requisite BPS from amongst the officers of the provincial service, cadre, or functional list as provided in this chapter for posting in a district or Tehsil/town post on deputation in the manner as specified in sub-section (5).

(3) Upon the coming into force of this chapter, the government shall not recruit for the posts of district technical and local cadres or Tehsil and local cadres. (4) The officers in the district coordination and district financial cadres shall be provided with special post allowance, which shall be three times of the basic running pay of such officers and shall be paid along with their salary.

(5) Positive performance appointment on deputation in the district and Tehsil/town technical cadres shall be in the following methods: (a) two months before a post is due to fall vacant, the concerned administration with the approval of the respective council shall advertise the vacancy with the special post allowance, which in any case shall not be more than two times of basic running pay of the respective officers; (b) the eligible persons, who have served for two and a half years in their existing posts may apply to the concerned administration for appointment in such vacancy; (c) based on applicants’ reputation, experience, qualification and requirement of the job, the administration with the approval of the concerned Nazim may recommend a panel of three officers in the order of priority to the government for filling of the post; and (d) the government shall ordinarily post the top-most person in the panel and if such person is not approve the next selected officer will be posted and if he is not approved the last recommended officer shall be posted and, in case it is not possible to post any of three recommended officers, the government shall convey its decision to the concerned administration with reasons.

(6) All posts in BPS 1 to 16 in the schedules of Establishment of district government and Tehsil or Town Municipal Administration shall be grouped into the district local cadre and Tehsil or town cadre. Provided that posts in schedule of Establishment of Union administration shall be grouped with the district local cadre.

(7) The matter relating to recruitment, training, posting and transfer and discipline of the district local cadre and Tehsil or town local cadre shall be regulated by the concerned administration as approved by the respective council.

(8) The tenure of posting of the federal and provincial employees against the provincial and local posts in the district shall be three years.

140C: Structure and functions of the district Human Resource Management Office (DHRMO):

(1) The DHRMO shall be under the administrative control of a district officer in BPS 18 who shall report to the district coordination officer. (2) The DHRMO shall consist of sections, for recruitment, training, promotion, maintenance of personnel record, career planning, discipline, retirement and pension matters each headed by a deputy district officer. (3) The DHRMO shall be responsible to periodically prepare and forward the requisition for the posts falling vacant in a quarter to the Provincial Public Service Commission describing the qualification, pay scale, age and other requirement of the posts.

(4) As soon as the recommendations of the Provincial Public Service Commission are received the appointments letters shall be issued to the selected candidate in the order of merit determined by the Commission and inform the Zila Nazim accordingly. (5) The DHRMO shall be the secretariat of the Zila Selection Committee, which will be responsible to recruit and promote officials in BPS 1 to 15 in the district local cadres.

(6) The DHRMO shall prepare a capacity building plan for training and development of all employees in the district and depute the selected candidates during a year to attend training and the selected officers shall be approval for training by Zila Nazim. (7) The DHRMO in consultation with the law group of officers deal with the litigation cases. (8) The DHRMO in consultation with the information technology group of offices utilize to the maximum possible extent the computerization of maintaining the personnel record.

140D: Structure and functions of the Tehsil General Establishment Branch:

(1) In each Tehsil/town there shall be a General Establishment branch responsible for (a) recruitment, probation, training, promotion, maintenance of personnel record including leave record preferably in computerized form, career planning, efficiency, conduct and discipline cases, assistance in litigation cases, retirement and pension matters of employees of Tehsil local cadres in BPS 1 to 15.

(b) Preparing periodically and forwarding the requisition for the posts falling vacant in a quarter to the provincial public service commission describing the qualifications, pay scale age and other recruitment of the posts in the Tehsil technical cadre; (c) as soon as the recommendations of the commission are received the appointment letters shall be issued to the selected candidates in the order of merit determined by the Commission and in form the Tehsil/town Nazim accordingly; and (d) preparing a capacity building plan for training and development of all employees in the Tehsil/town and depute the selected officials during a year for attending training and the selected officials shall be approved for training by Tehsil/town Nazim.

(2) The General Establishment branch shall act as secretariat of the Tehsil/town selection committee, which will be responsible to recruit and promote official sin BPS 1 to 15 in the Tehsil/town local cadres.

140E: Disciplinary powers of Nazims and Naib Nazims: – The Nazims and Naib Nazims shall take disciplinary action against local government functionaries of their respective establishments and shall be responsible to the government for effective implementation of efficiency and disciplinary rules.

Source: The News

Date:1/16/2007