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Merit as a Disqualifier

A system that accepts patronage as the primary factor governing upward mobility must eventually collapse. To compound the situation, the beneficiaries of a Client-Patron relationship have to resort to corruption and nepotism to sustain themselves within the system. This is done to the detriment of talent and merit, striking at the very root of efficiency and achievement. Negating the principle of fair-play and justice in evaluating performance and capability sets in motion a process that eventually destroys the system from within. It puts pressure on the working of any body, administrative, corporate, etc, giving ground to a vicious circle of endemic inefficiency and mal-administration. When individuals without merit become the arbiters of future recruitment, they tend to select people in their own image, force-multiplying the process of self-destruction. Very much like continuing inter-marriage between blood relations leads to mental and physical retardation, patronage leads to debilitation of the system.

Patronage militates against accountability, the lack of it sustains the capacity of the corrupt and inefficient to perpetuate their domination. Talent and merit are never given the weightage they deserve except if it suits the plans of the UnGodly to gain some temporary advantage. The contribution of professionals is rarely recognized and they are usually cast away when not required any further. Since those who should effect accountability would themselves be its first subjects, it would hardly be reasonable to accept that they would blow a police whistle on themselves. The principle of accountability thus fails at the altar of greed and ambition. Once it becomes inherently clear to the honest and efficient that they will get a short shrift if they step out of line, they tend to merge themselves into the system, having a telling effect on the quality of service available. Capable and honest individuals with self-respect become the living dead, existing in deep apprehension out of the basic need of survival for themselves and their families. They watch in frustration as the organisation in which they work is systematically looted, while their talent and merit becomes a handicap for them, those qualities being treated as suspect. Most succumb to the age-old adage, “if you can’t fight them, join them”.

The usual form of patronage is on the basis of family and or clan. The word “talented cousin” was coined by the late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in referring to blood relation Mumtaz Bhutto but the fashion of sponsoring close relations and manoeuvring them into critical and/or lucrative posts is age-old and time-honoured. We are now witness to “talented husbands”, “talented brothers”, “talented sons and brothers-in-law” etc though one daresays some of the individuals so ostracized may be more than deserving and qualified for whatever post they may have been accorded. However, the fact remains that nepotism is now so rampant in the system that in order to sustain it, those with merit are ruthlessly eliminated so that they do not exist as possible examples for comparison with those without merit. Needless to say there are many individuals prospering on the basis of nepotism who have the merit to qualify for a particular post and/or promotion on their own laurels. By not placing confidence in their own abilities these individuals become part of the overall malfeasance. The whole system has become so corrupted that genuine merit is looked at with skepticism by the intelligentsia and the general public, a sort of a “crying wolf” in reverse. Close relations and/or friends of deserving merit seldom escape approbation in climbing up the promotion ladder, such is the state of disbelief in the truth by the masses.

The second form of patronage is the circle of friends and acquaintances one develops over the years within the system, the inter-dependence leads to rampant favouritism in order to sustain mutual advancement. This circle of friends come from the same region or even from school or college origins. In Pakistan today, “Graeen Baazi” (loosely translated as village connection) has become endemic, the Village/Tehsil/District/Province connection is bedevilling the Pakistani aspect of our future. Because of the long period of martial law and lack of political activity, people tended to coalesce around “Baradaris” or “Brotherhood” of either their clans, tribes or whatever. Throwing the original concept of democracy to the winds which is essentially an association of like-minded people regardless of race, creed, religion, etc, our democratic system has become hostage to whatever clan is a majority in a particular constituency. This has caused blatant regionalism and separatism to emerge. It has also resulted in a bunch of feudals being elected and re-elected to the democratic forums, their backgrounds negating all the principles of a democratic system. In every public organisation of the country, whether it be the Armed Forces, the bureaucracy or public corporate bodies, etc, this disease has permeated, to the detriment of that particular entity. In the past the Armed Forces was exposed to this phenomenon upto the Junior Commissioned Officers in the units and sub-units, it was considered by the Officer Corps to be an evil to be eliminated. Good Commanding Officers eradicated it without any ado. Unfortunately instead of getting any better, the situation has now gone worse. One remembers that even in an elite Arm like the Army Aviation which once attracted the cream of the officers, some parochial types infiltrated the ranks in 1969/1970. Some were better than the average in soldiering but in utter contrast to their professionalism, their total focus was based on their village and Tehsil connections. One such gentleman has managed to reach within striking distance of a top slot in that particular discipline of the Army, the future consequences for selection and promotion are quite imaginable. One daresays that “Chachas”, “Mamas”, “Tayas” and brothers-in-law, etc may not have all their way in the Army but some people will still manage to slip through, to the detriment of an excellent service. Late Gen Ziaul Haq could never really shake himself free from his origin and his “Jullunder Mafia”. Similarly an unofficial quota system for top slots that exists militates against efficiency. At least a couple of retired senior officers who made it upto the rank of Lieutenant General several years ago did not have the capacity to rise beyond field grade, they made it because of their tribal connections and became latter-day Rommels and Guderians, complete with desert goggles. Such people are bad examples for the young Officer Corps, still imbued with the idealism instilled in them in the Academy and by their fighting units.

The third form of patronage is developed out of the association of the corrupt. The power of government when mixed with the power of money makes for an extremely strong and potent combination. This is particularly true in the Civil Service. One such senior gentleman who now has become a senior consultant made it to “Reader’s Digest” as an example of corruption in the third world, the number of refrigerators, air-conditioners, etc given to his daughter on her wedding making for a record of sorts. A couple of talented brothers passed on business opportunities that they came across in the 1950s because of their Civil Service appointments directly to their businessman brother, who became the agent for renowned aircraft manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, etc. There was a virtual plethora of such people in the Civil Service who in order to survive developed a coterie of corrupt officers around themselves, some of whom eventually did (and do still) rise to the top slots. This circle of corruption has expanded till the honest officers feel insecure if they do not indulge, for fear of being ostracised and sent packing. Whereas once upon a time it was considered a matter of pride to be labelled honest, it is now much safer to remain within the pack. One still feels that there is a great silent majority among the Civil Service that would rise up against the endemic corruption but bad pay-scales, atrocious living conditions, inflation and the Joneses-living-next-door have driven them to this unwilling route. There may not be harder working people than the personnel of the Karachi Police but given the demands on the Police Budget (Toyota land-cruisers for all and sundry instead of personnel trucks) and their conditions of service, one is not surprised that it has been badly corrupted, the few good senior officers feel helpless and frustrated. With the advent of heroin smuggling and its big bucks, all the law enforcement agencies are under pressure a la Colombia, the Medillin Syndrome is very much a part of our system, not a thing of a far away land anymore.

How does one fight the wholesale takeover of our system by the individual and collective forces of evil? Frankly, except for the part dealing with procurement and manufacturing, the Armed Forces remain significantly clean. In this respect the Aid to Civil Power exercise must be considered a form of war, the norms must be strictly observed. Deterrent punishment of discipline must be meted to those who are found involved in corruption of any level. Whatever step one takes, there can be no better method than recognising and rewarding merit. The system is in place and for the most part we adhere to it, one must ensure that there are no exceptions. In this respect, the best method of quality control is Mutual Assessment, with the greatest weightage given to honesty and integrity. At every level of public service, in Government and the Armed Forces, Mutual Assessment on an annual basis must become a regular exercise. Only your colleagues really know your true character and capabilities, let them be impartial judges with due weightage for various attributes. The Annual Confidential Report (ACR) must have 25% weightage with 75% reserved for Annual Mutual Assessment (AMA). We must change the system, in the hands of corrupt, nepotism-oriented individuals, the careers of many becomes murky. Merit invariably becomes a threat to the insecure, it becomes a disqualifier. Let us restore merit and talent to its original place on the pedestal, along with honesty and integrity they should be the most potent qualifications for upward mobility. The emancipation of the people of Pakistan lies in rewarding merit, not denigrating it.

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