Top civil bureaucrats are confused about their role in running the administration after October 26, as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina recently said in a meeting with them that the cabinet would not make any policy decisions.
Most of the secretaries who attended the meeting do not know who will run the administration after October 26 or how many members that administration will have.
They are also confused about their duties and which decisions will be considered as “policy decisions.”
The secretaries are waiting for instructions from the high-ups, which they expect to get after October 26 when the government turns into an “interim one” to oversee the next general elections.
In her meeting with the secretaries on September 2, Hasina said her government would continue after October 26, but it would not make any policy-level decision in that period. She also told the secretaries that during that period the bureaucrats would have to play a major role as ministers would be busy with electioneering.
On September 12, the cabinet secretary sent a letter to all secretaries, asking them to stay alert and careful about their duties until the next general elections.
A secretary said the cabinet secretary had asked them to continue the “stability of the administration and development activities” of the government and be prepared to hold general elections in a free and fair manner.
However, a number of secretaries, seeking anonymity, told the Dhaka Tribune that despite the letter from the cabinet secretary they were unclear about the system of the interim government, number of its members and their responsibilities.
The cabinet secretary also instructed them to coordinate and dictate the law enforcement agencies “properly” during election time.
Emphasising coordination between the law enforcement agencies, judiciary and administration, the letter said it must be ensured that the activities of one organ did not interrupt the activities and duties of the others. The secretaries would have to ensure that the democratic system was not interrupted, it said.
Mentioning that the ministers would not make any policy decisions, the letter asked the secretaries to ensure that the routine work of the administration was not interrupted in the absence of the ministers. The secretaries would have to make decisions in consultation with the ministers and other secretaries concerned.
The prime minister during her meeting with the top bureaucrats also asked them to remain alert so that no undemocratic force could take power.
“But, if any such force comes to power, it will suspend the constitution. What will be our role in such situations?” a secretary close to the government high-ups told the Dhaka Tribune Tuesday.
Another secretary, who belongs to the 1982 BCS batch, said most of them were not sure about their positions during the period of interim government as according to the proposed amendment to the RPO, the Election Commission would be given the power to transfer and reshuffle the civil administration.
“We cannot decide on our role during the period until we are sure about our positions,” the bureaucrat said.
“However, we are aware about the directives given by the prime minister and the cabinet secretary, and we will stay alert so that no anti-democratic and militant force can arise. We will also try to ensure the rule of law,” he said.
When contacted, Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told the Dhaka Tribune last night that the letter contained “preparatory” instructions as per the PM’s directive.
“There should not be any confusion. The administrative guideline clearly mentions which decisions have to go through the cabinet, which ones can be made at the minister level and which decisions can be made by the secretaries concerned.
“Yet, if any secretary thinks there are confusions, they can discuss the issues with me. Confusions can also be cleared even discussing with the prime minister, if necessary,” he said.