Most public servants and public representatives are all talk and no action. I have come to this conclusion based on my own experiences. The residential plot allotted to me in an Overseas Pakistani Housing Colony in Karachi along with thousands of other is occupied. Regarding the occupation of the plot, I filed a complaint in the Sindh Ombudsman after which asked the Police Department about the matter on 19 October, 2009. Since then in the past years, I have repeatedly written to the Sindh Ombudsman for looking further into the matter but it has been to no avail and I have gotten no response whatsoever.
In another incident, On 5 January 2012, I addressed the SECP with my complaint and I have every right to do so as a shareholder. The handling by the Secretary PIC was very dismissive. He scribbled “return to the sender” on my letter. Why? Any monitoring authority within the SECP has not taken note of this type of lethargic handling of public communication despite reminders.
To illustrate my point about apathy in public quarters, I will relate another anecdote. The Federal Insurance Ombudsman, as is usual in our country, said in an interview that he invited any aggrieved person to come knock on his always-open doors. I brought to his attention, the sufferings of two laborers, both of whom had valid State Life Insurance Policies. He told me that he cannot entertain complaints against State Life. He forwarded it to the Federal Ombudsman Islamabad from where nothing has been heard, despite my repeated reminders. I have sought a legal interpretation from the Secretary Justice & Law Division on this contention of the Insurance Ombudsman (as in the relevant clause of the Companies Ordinance, there is no mention at all of the words State Life/NLIC). Despite reminders, the Justice Division has not given even a single response.
The written rules makes it mandatory for every official in all the above quoted departments to immediately and invariably acknowledge receipt of a communication from any member of the public and follow it up by an appropriate response.
During all this long period of year(s) I have spent a lot of expense and time in reminding requests. Maybe if I, like Malik Riaz said, “attach wheels to my files”, they would move faster.
MUHAMMAD JAVED
Karachi
