Manu
4 March 2008
Port Louis — As public service employees await the forthcoming PRB report, this article lays emphasis on the burdens it will bring to the economy, especially that productivity is on the decline.
Trafic jams in Port Louis are a daily curse. These, according to a MEF report, are responsible for slowing down productivity in both public and private sectors.
Both high and low ranking public service employees and trade unionists are waiting for the imminent publication of the PRB report this year impatiently. The last publication of the PRB report some five years ago had brought an average increase of 20% in the salaries. Such an increase or even more is expected this year. And in face of the rising costs of living, it will be considered as a relief, a reward for their efforts and encouragement to continue the work in the same way. But should we continue the same way? And reward for what? No justification for reward
In fact it is most probable that the PRB report would be a burden to the whole economy and injustice to the people not working in the public sector. Indeed, our national productivity and that of the public sector has not improved, it has declined. This can be verified in IMF, UN or our own CSO documents. Even the government television, the MBCTV used to air programmes on that subject matter and in particular there were programmes by the NPCC. It is because our productivity is on decline that our cost of living is increasing. Though it is true that this is also caused by imported inflation. But our weak rupee - whose value depends on our productivity and direct foreign investments, which also depend on the conditions and services we create here, exacerbates even imported inflation.
So if our productivity and quality of service has declined, there is no justification for any reward!
Public Disservice
Now it could be argued that the public sector alone is not to be blamed for the decline of our productivity. However it is also true that there is no measure whatsoever to show if the efficiency of the public service has improved. And the trade unionists are dead against any form of performance measurement in the public sector. Hence we need to depend on other indications to judge whether the public service has improved and deserves any reward. Despite some progress it is not what we expect in 2008 and deserve after 40 years. There are tangible indications that show that unfortunately, the public service has turned into disservice in most cases. A few examples suffice.
Traffic jams, not only during weekdays and not only in the cities and quality of public transport are worsening! Neither the high ranking public officers responsible for strategy and policy making nor the numerous government Engineers & Town Planners responsible for analysis & design have come up with viable solutions. All of them like to use duty-free cars.
We also have traffic jams in the late afternoon, after the public officers have reached home. As from 5.00 pm, there is no policeman on most of the roads to manage traffic. We all feel the degradation of law & order. The slow pace at which investigations are carried out by the police department has been highlighted recently. No progress so far on the gangs of bouncers, and on a number of cases investigated in detail by private medias.
Cases of medical neglects are on the increase. We now hear of unqualified doctors practicing in hospitals. And cases of absent or late doctors, cases of miss-management of hospitals are common.
This is the second case of errors made during correction of examination papers by MES and we have not yet heard any progress into the investigation on the first case and any corrective action taken. At the same time, the fact that private tuition has become an efficient parallel education system proves that the official education system is redundant.
Write to any ministry (Environment or Health especially) or a local authority to report or complain on something and you are sure to receive just indifference and neglect of your problem. This attitude was at the root of the tensions we had in Quatre- Bornes last year.
The annual MAB reports detail out the public service miss-management and show how each year taxpayers' confidence is abused, and money is squandered shamelessly and unpunished.
Ciblage of Fat & Smaller Cats
In fact ministers and top ranking officials of ministries mentioned negatively in the MAB report should be disqualified for any benefits increase until and unless they redress the situation at the next report. On one hand politicians have their big share of blame in all this. But it is we who choose to elect them. On the other hand, there is an Establishment made of permanent, protected high-ranking officers, the Fat Cats. They are those to benefit the most from PRB and the status quo. And faced with a low popularity, this year's report would be just a political tool. And the abuse would continue, and so would our "laissez faire" attitude. The only thing pulling us up is the growth in the private sector where most people toil unprotected and the minority of public servants carry the weight of others. To avoid any abuse, in fact the PRB needs to practice "ciblage" from top to bottom of the public service.
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