PM bid to end ministers, bureaucrats hostility

KATHMANDU, March 18: Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai has expressed his sadness over recent mistreatment to some secretaries by a minister and trade unions over transfers of civil servants.

"I am seriously hurt by disrespectful and indecent activities over transfers at a time when we are supposed to be united and active to come up with programs of relief, development, peace and reforms," the prime minister said in a joint meeting of ministers and government secretaries on Sunday. [break]

The prime minister convened the meeting in a bid to instill a sense of unity between ministers and bureaucrats.

The prime minister directed the ministers and the secretaries to define their work jurisdiction if there are any confusion and not to repeat the mess seen in the transfers of government employees in future. In the meeting, the prime minister asked the ministers and the bureaucrats to reflect their works and learn lesson from the mistakes.

Secys to fight interference

Taking strong exception to mistreatment by ministers and civil servants´ trade unions, the government secretaries on Sunday said that they would no more tolerate interference in their works and vowed to fight such mistreatment.

The secretaries made the commitment to fight interference at a meeting held close of the heels of mistreatment of Secretary Brinda Hada by Minister for Irrigation Mahendra Yadav and secretaries Kishor Thapa and Pratap Pathak by civil servants´ trade union over the transfers of employees under their offices.

“We regret these incidents,” said a statement issued after the meeting.

The secretaries stressed on the need for regularizing transfers and criticized ministers, deciding to develop transparent criteria for transfers as per the existing Civil Servant Act and Regulations, according a secretary.

“We will not make transfers on recommendations or suggestions,” said another secretary about the decision of the meeting.

The secretaries, including the chief secretary, expressed solidarity with secretaries Hada, Thapa and Pathak. They asked Thapa, who had announced his resignation in protest of the interference of trade unions in the recent transfers of civil servants under the Ministry of Education, not to step down, saying such a move would dampen the confidence of other bureaucrats.

“He then told the meeting that he would not resign,” said another secretary, on condition of anonymity.

The four-hour long meeting has also urged civil servants´ trade unions to play constructive role in ensuring effective service delivery and curbing irregularities and corruption.