As justice and fair play have remained a primary manifesto of the PTI government, The Prime Minister’s performance Delivery Unit was reorganized in October 2018 to promote citizen centric and participatory governance. One of the most significant initiatives taken by PMDU, has been the establishment of Pakistan Citizen Portal mobile application.
This portal is a complaint redressel platform which operates through certain standard operating procedures (SOPs). Since its inception, the Pakistan Citizen Portal has been successful in achieving a complaint resolution rate of 40 percent, with redressing matters as grave as abductions, forgery and harassment.
In March 2020, Kate Merchenko lodged a complaint against an officer of Foreign Service of Pakistan (FSP), accusing him of rape and sexual harassment. She further accused the said officer of her unlawful termination while his posting as first secretary in the Embassy of Pakistan, Kyiv.
The PMDU immediately sent the matter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for investigation and prompt resolution of the issue. Resultantly the MOFA initiated disciplinary proceedings against the charged officer through inquiry under Government Servants (Efficiency & Discipline) rules.
Having found the officer guilty of misconduct, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and creating a hostile environment, the Foreign Secretary imposed a major penalty of removal from service in terms of civil servants E&D rules, with immediate effect.
Considering the gravity of the issue, the above mentioned complaint remained on the watch list of PMDU, before it was finally closed with the caption “Relief Granted”.
Accountability remains at the heart of any democratic government, while in Pakistan, never has it been possible that actions are initiated against influential officers, let alone they are dismissed from service. The PMDU is working collectively with state departments for bringing justice at the doorstep of grieved Pakistanis.
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