[ad_1]
In Pakistan, the place the ability of social media is plain, imposing strict guidelines that muzzle officers and bar them from participating with the media not solely stifles their voices but in addition runs afoul of the very essence of whistle-blowing legal guidelines and apex court docket judgment.
Whistle-blowers play a pivotal position in exposing wrongdoing, however when the avenues for his or her revelations are barricaded, it isn’t simply officers who are suffering; it is the transparency and accountability within the society that’s put in danger.
It is time to query whether or not these restrictions on social media and media interactions are actually within the public’s finest curiosity or merely serve to protect these in energy from scrutiny.
The Punjab authorities has taken decisive steps to manage the utilization of social media platforms by civil servants, each the provincial and federal officers in Punjab. This new directive, issued by the Companies and Normal Administration Division, carries substantial weight in reshaping the web conduct of presidency officers.
The newly launched tips explicitly require civil servants to chorus from utilizing well-liked social media platforms like YouTube, WhatsApp, Twitter, TikTok, and different micro-blogging purposes the place regulation and order, contempt of court docket, defamation, state safety, and so forth are compromised. Furthermore, these guidelines prolong to curbing authorities staff’ direct interactions with media retailers and expressing private opinions on public boards, together with Fb and numerous different social media channels.
The Institution Division has already reiterated the importance of those laws, emphasising their essential position in sustaining order and professionalism throughout the civil service.
The first motivation behind these stringent measures lies within the authorities’s concern that unchecked social media utilization could result in issues and disruptions within the environment friendly functioning of presidency affairs. These tips have been applied to instill self-discipline and supply a transparent framework for communication channels throughout the civil service.
Civil servants have been duly cautioned that any violations of those directions will lead to disciplinary motion being taken towards them. This stern stance serves as a transparent reminder for presidency staff to stick to the newly established tips and train sense of their on-line engagements.
The Punjab authorities is proactively addressing the necessity to preserve professionalism amongst civil servants of their digital interactions. These tips are anticipated to have a profound impression on how authorities officers navigate the digital panorama whereas fulfilling their official tasks.
Within the case of Anita Turab, the Supreme Court docket of Pakistan had emphasised that civil servants should prioritise their allegiance to the regulation and the Structure. They aren’t obligated to observe orders from superiors which can be illegal or don’t align with established practices and constitutional norms. In such circumstances, they need to doc their views and, if required, categorical their dissent.
As a substitute of imposing undue bans on all officers, the necessity is to scrutinize these authorities officers who steadily use WhatsApp to share delicate paperwork.
Some authorities officers appear engrossed in social media actions like chatting on Fb throughout official hours, usually neglecting guests.
Why do some authorities officers prioritize private actions comparable to writing articles or creating YouTube content material over public dealings throughout their official time? How can this pattern be addressed and managed?
It’s the want of the hour to switch WhatsApp with selfmade apps like Chinese language’ WeChat to save lots of knowledge breaches.
[ad_2]
Source link
