TAKING strong exception to the sluggish progress by most of the ministries and departments, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, on Sunday, assigned the Ministry of Information Technology and other relevant departments, the task of implementing the e-office system in all government offices within one month. He warned that delay in the implementation of e-office in government offices would not be tolerated, adding there should be no file work without e-office in the government offices from next month.
There are clear advantages of the e-office system, which should have served as incentives for all organizations and entities to go paperless but regrettably vested interests and a mindset of opposition to any change have served as stumbling blocks in the way of smooth realization of the cherished objective. Practical experience has established beyond any doubt that automation saves time and cost and leads towards greater transparency and proper/efficient monitoring of the office working. Billions are spent annually on the purchase of stationery besides expenditure on storekeeping and the paperless environment makes it possible to cut on the cost of doing business. The system also makes it far easier to store and share files quickly, keep track of the movement of the file and hold the entire chain responsible and accountable in case of red-tape, which is one of the major concerns of governance in Pakistan. In this backdrop, the keen interest being shown by the Prime Minister for swift transformation to e-office is quite understandable. In fact, he himself witnessed huge benefits of digitization during his tenure as Chief Minister of Punjab when a number of initiatives were launched in the realm of information technology including land record and a host of services for citizens. It is encouraging that the PM is leading by example as his office has already completed e-office training and he himself is receiving files electronically. ‘Shehbaz speed’ has already become a virtual proverb and it is hoped implementation of the e-office programme would help improve service delivery further. However, for this to happen, directions should be issued to all ministries and offices to have customized software based on their functions and nature of responsibility with proper provision for strict vigilance and control by sectional and organizational heads to ensure quick disposal of the business and complete transparency. There are, of course, concerns about the safety of the office system because of the possibility of cyber-attacks but solutions are also available to improve security.
