– Sorting ourselves out and helping the offices out of their ML and DFM work ethics.
Life is so very short. We all have so much to do, before we leave this world. (I’ve just returned from the funeral of a person known to me. She died suddenly, last night. She was fine.) So, is it fair to prolong simple jobs for the public, due to inefficient methods, or prehistoric ‘systems’ ?
No, it isn’t!
We’ve got to find ways to make systems efficient, so the work is completed within shortest time.
It can be done, through our collective power of intentions.
If by any happy chance, you are working at any of the offices of Government or private,
where there are ‘procedures’ and ‘rules’. Then, please read this blog post with an open heart. Know that and your efforts (in the form of reduction of steps-to-get-a-job-done for your client,) may help you too, in the end.
End??? Oops!
First, correct your own faulty papers:
We need to look at ourselves first. Many of us have faulty papers in hand, which we ourselves know that these have to be corrected. The NADRA CNIC cards of most persons were filled, with many mistakes. When we read, we realized many things were not correct. Or with time, these became incorrect because we moved houses, or cities.
My husband and I had gone for a correction to the NADRA office in Rawalpindi once. On visiting the office, we found out that Waliya was written down as son, Wali. So, we corrected that. Similarly there were many more mistakes, like place of birth, names of family members etc. When we change address, we have to get it corrected in the CNIC card also.
When I protested to the management, about the lengthy processes, he said, ‘you all had these cards for so many years, why didn’t you get it corrected earlier?’ He was so right!
Realize, it is for your benefit:
Try to be as patient and cool headed as possible, during the process. Be methodical, and take your bottle of water, chewing gums, goodies, in purse.
Give yourself a treat, at every step. – Yes, celebrate!
When I was furious, at the time of going to pick up my mother’s corrected CNIC card, I told the person in charge , I’m going to write a blog post on this!’
He said,’ I’m only doing it to secure it for your mother! Please appreciate that.’ Yes, he was right. Finally, he agreed to talk to my mother on video call and get her permission to let me collect her card – this is what I mean by using modern methods -I had also put the FRC (Family registration certificate with pictures, in front of him.) So, he could recognize my mother properly. I told him, it is difficult for her to come, every time. So, he agreed. So, try to see the problem from their position also.
Maybe they are just doing their job!
Present conditions:
Right now, in every office you visit; you will find two types of works going on.
- The ‘good’: smooth, efficient work methods and ethics being followed.
- The ‘bad and the ugly’: too many complicated ‘methods’ and ‘rules’.
Yes, in many lucky cases, the process is smooth, and free from unexpected and horrifying hassles. Your work gets done almost immediately.
If you are veryyyyy lucky! (One of the officers confessed, that if I do this work on same day, I’ll be asked by the audit team, why I completed it so quickly?)
Otherwise, the personnel at every office, are combining old and new ways to torture their client (that’s you,) by asking for all types of attestations, affidavits, ‘ishtamp’ papers, and whatever else methods of torture they can think of. – Especially when you are aggrieved, hassled and driven through courts by your beloved outlaws.
In short the ML and DFM treatment.
What are ML and DFM procedures?
ML : in Punjabi language there is a terminology of saying maghron laiye this means that you should ‘get off our head’! So, they send you off on another wild goose chase.
DFM: Another technical term in Punjabi: Dhur fittay moon! I doubt if there is a parallel to this term, which means in brief, ‘to hell with you!’!
My message in a nutshell:
If you are working in any of the organizations, please…. Just sit down for a few minutes, and look over what you are doing to your clients. You can:
- SIMPLIFY rather than to COMPLICATE the procedures.
- Give exemplary punishments to the criminals that try to mess with your systems in office and publicize these cases.
- DO NOT PUNISH INNOCENT PEOPLE FOR CRIMES COMMITTED BY CRIMINALS. Most of the criminals have got away with it, and you are busy punishing the innocents.
- Also know, that no one from outside can do a criminal act without help from an ‘insider’. So, when found out, again an exemplary punishment is vital, and the person must be made an example for rest of staff of that organization.
In short, for the crimes of about 5 % of your clients, you are punishing 95 % of your clients!
Distorted ‘justice system’ – by punishing the innocents:
I remember, that once in the PAF Officer’s Mess, (a long time ago.) it was found out that the person in charge was swindling the cash. So, he was posted out, while everyone there, was asked for extra funds in Mess Bills to adjust the mismanaged finances!!!
Masha Allah! This is our sense of justice.
Here, Nawaz Sharif, Zardari and their clans swindle the country, and everyone else has to pay for it.
Correct justice system:
The correct way is to catch the criminal and make him pay for all the extra expenses that he swindled or incurred. In Pakistan, the system of justice is to punish the innocent – while the crooks get away scot free.
Wait a minute!
It is so, the world over.
If you just look at the visa’s applications, they have become so grueling; It is for the same reasons. Everyone is paying for the crimes of a few. But in some ways, they have become very technically updated and upgraded.
We are mostly in the stone age!
Solution:
- Have grueling punishments for those who do things wrongly.
- Facilitate the good guys.
In a school where I worked, we had a very good administrator. But when it came to the results of the classes, she wanted us teachers to have the results of each class handwritten three times. (I was teaching English to five classes then!) So, I suggested, we write one, and have three photocopies of it, for each class. She said, ‘no, it all has to be handwritten three times!’ I was ready to fight it out, till the Math teacher, (God bless him,) opted to write them three times each for me. Why!!???
Simplify, get real. Be in the 21st century!
My proposals for procedures:
Check out all present ‘rules and procedures’:
- Keep the process brief and crisp. Do away with affidavits, stamp papers and attestations, and specially grade 17 Magistrate signatures.
- Ask yourself, is the rule still applicable?
- Are there simpler alternatives? How can we reduce these procedures to a minimum?
Before making any new rules/procedures:
Find out:
- Firstly, which previous ‘rule’ will the new one replace?
- How effective can this be, for how many? (Is it necessary?)
- Use latest technology to have effective ways to resolve issues. Can this be done online?
- Death certificate: Hospital document, should be enough for NADRA to discontinue the CNIC card, and allot the death certificate, why should one have to go to the Union Council also?
- Pension: Death certificate and CNIC card of nominee: it is written there if she is wife. That is all that is needed.
To make my point clear:
If the present rules were so great, why is there so much crime today? – Because, my dears, most of the crime takes place with help and direction an insider from the organization. So, in fact, they have to improve their own induction processes, and human resource management.
Five benefits of simplified ‘procedures’:
- Everyone will follow the rules and procedures. The lessor steps there are, the more people will follow it. The same applies to income tax procedures too.
- There will be less crime.
- Since each ‘application’ process will take lessor time, more work will be achieved in lessor time. Hence the pressure in offices will decrease. The’ flow’ will be fast and efficient.
- More work will get done in everyone’s personal lives too.
- Better work done, at all levels due to less disillusionment, frustration and hopelessness.
A fresh mindset is the answer. The citizen of Pakistan must get priority. We all have better things to do, than to run round and round the Mulberry bush for sorting out crazy, obsolete and irrelevant ‘procedures’ of almost all offices.
As Ashfaque Ahmed would always say,
Allah ap ko asaaniyan bantnay wala banaye! May you be able to make life easier for others.
Make this happen in your own place of power, and stay blessed. 🙂
Note: All photographs are taken by author, except the one of Ashfaque Ahmad, which was taken from internet. All the quotations were taken from internet also.
