The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government formed over 40 task forces soon after it took over power on August 18, 2018, that were mandated to achieve the targets of development and reforms set out by the federal government but it is unclear whether any of the task forces have delivered substantively.
Shortly after coming to power and being sworn in as Prime Minister, Imran Khan set up a number of task forces to implement the PTI government's 100-day plan including the task force on changing NAB (National Accountability Bureau ) laws, civil services reforms, accountability to bring back looted money, energy, health, education, creation of 10 million jobs, construction of five million houses, polio eradication, review of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas ) merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as well as on other issues.
Around 40 task forces exist on paper. Practically, however, apart from a handful the outcome of the task forces remains shrouded in mystery, sources in Prime Minister's Office told Business Recorder.
An anecdotal survey carried out by Business Recorder revealed that presently the government is seriously pursuing targets set by task forces in only in five sectors and their performance is being evaluated by the PM himself. These task forces include amending NAB laws, construction of five million homes, civil service reforms, energy and FATA merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The task force on amending NAB laws has recommended amendments in National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) 1999 including amending the laws relating to issuance of production orders of parliamentarians arrested by NAB. "These recommendations are being shared with the PM and following his approval, a presidential ordinance would be promulgated," the source said.
Last month, Law Minister Farogh Naseem announced in a press conference that amendments in NAB laws were being finalised to ensure that those businessmen who are not linked to any political party are not tried by NAB for financial offences and instead their cases dealt with by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
The task force focused on the construction of five million houses is also directly reporting to the PM. Recently, the government got Naya Pakistan Housing and Development Authority Ordinance 2019 extended for 120 days with the passage of a related resolution in National Assembly. The Naya Pakistan Housing and Development Authority is the official body tasked to construct five million houses.
The third sector where the task force has visibly performed entails civil services reforms. The related task force headed by former governor State Bank of Pakistan Dr Ishrat Hussain has recommended certain reforms in the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) and civil services that require PM's approval to be put up for parliamentary legislation in order to come into effect, the Business Recorder was informed.
Power sector is the fourth sector where the task force has reportedly yielded results. Apart from federal government, the chief ministers of Punjab and KP have also constituted task forces for the control of electricity theft.
At the provincial level, the task force against power theft is headed by the secretary energy of the province and includes the chief executive officers (CEO) of concerned power distribution companies (DISCOs), relevant deputy commissioners and district police officers, officials claim.
Lastly, the task force overseeing Fata's merger with KP played a significant role in extending critical support to Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to hold general elections on 16 seats of erstwhile FATA merged into KP Assembly.
Some key sectors where the performance of task forces remain far from satisfactory include accountability - to bring back looted money, reforms in Punjab Police, and reforms in education and health sectors.
Soon after coming to power, the PTI government had appointed former inspector general police (IGP) Nasir Durrani to spearhead the drive to reform Punjab Police but he resigned following serious differences with the provincial government on reforming Punjab Police. Incidents of police brutality particularly against the poor and underprivileged make headlines on a daily basis in Punjab with proposed revamping of police nowhere in sight.
Task forces on education and health have yet to yield any positive outcome given that the federal and provincial governments are struggling to improve standards at government schools and hospitals.
It is unclear what recommendations if any were submitted by the task force on austerity as the budget for the current year envisages a massive rise in both current (around 30 percent if debt servicing is not taken into account) and development expenditure.
The taskforce on science and technology mandated to build a state-of-the-art University of Engineering and Emerging Technologies at Prime Minister House has yet to announce a viable plan. Reportedly, the federal government gurus have quietly shelved this project while declaring it 'impracticable' for implementation. The task force was headed by renowned educationist Dr Atta-ur Rehman. Some government officials told Business Recorder that the federal government is still mulling setting up an educational institute at the PM House.
Requesting anonymity, a former bureaucrat, who enjoys close association with PM Khan, admitted that apart from only a handful of task forces, the others are 'practically dormant and have failed to yield any results'.
"I am of the opinion that a task force should only be formed when there is a dire need to establish one. In the first place, the formation of a task force is an expression of mistrust at the government's ministries and divisions- as it is assumed that the government departments are not working efficiently, therefore the government feels the urgency to rely on task forces," the source said.
"Instead of looking for shortcuts and temporary solutions the government should go for structural reforms to empower the government institutions so as to enable them to fulfil their responsibilities diligently and efficiently," he added.
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