PESHAWAR: With less than one month remaining before the sitting coalition government’s five year constitutional term comes to an end, an atmosphere of caution and reluctance is growingly pervasive in the provincial officialdom.

Bureaucracies of the private sector development organisations and their international donors have also switched on ‘the go slow button’ to avoid complications. The management of a private sector entity that is executing a foreign funded multi-million euro project in northern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has slowed down the implementation of its project plans, risking falling behind the project timeline. The result could be delay in the project deliverables.

The organisation is waiting for the interim setup to come in. Its current policy is that of ‘wait and see’ as the outgoing rulers are exerting pressure to get their supporters accommodated against several of the low cadre project posts and in the smaller business entities that would emerge as the end results.

The government machinery needs confidence and legitimacy to perform its functions, protect public interest and uphold supremacy of law. The required legitimacy comes from the decisions taken in accordance to official policies protected under the constitution and complemented by official rules and procedures.

Ideally, the official decision making process, service delivery and state’s overall functioning should continue with its normal pace and steadfastness even in an event of an inevitable change of guards at the federal and provincial levels in fulfillment of the constitutional provisions of holding elections on time.

According to a member of the ruling party in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, the provincial bureaucracy has been extra cautious for the last six months.

In an era of judicial activism, things have become more difficult for many in the provincial bureaucracy.

Apart from discharging their day-to-day official duties, some of them have to appear before Peshawar High Court regularly in connection with a number of important cases that involve the provincial government at the receiving end.

These officials usually in their private conversations with their fellows complain of their ‘tough experience’ at the hands of the judges. At times the bureaucrats have to face the ‘wrath of the judges’ for things that they (officials) consider beyond their abilities as some of the issues fall under the domain of the federal government and the military apparatus.

For example, the ban on export of cattle and poultry products to Afghanistan and the ongoing case of missing people. This has added more insult to injury.

Generally speaking, officials holding important positions are said to be cautious in implementing the outgoing rulers’ last minute decisions and hastily formulated policies. They are cautious to safe their own skins. They think the existing set of the rulers might not come in power after the coming elections, but they have to stay here, discharging their Bureaucrats reluctant to obey orders of outgoing govt official duties under the upcoming interim setup and the new provincial government that would take effect after the elections.

In accordance to the constitutional provisions, the sitting setup has a legitimate right to stay intact till mid March this year. The Awami National Party-led coalition government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has a constitutional right to remain in the office and continue discharging its existing duties till the five year constitutional cycle completes or an interim setup is put in place anytime in the days to come.

However, many believe that the government’s persistence to stay in the office till the very end of its constitutional term has done more harm than good. This has undermined the official functioning and decision making process as bureaucratic circles have started waiting for the interim setup to take reign of power from the outgoing government.

They might not be challenging the outgoing government’s policies or actions even if the decisions tend to be fully legal and constitutional. This is purely in part because there are limits that must be respected. The government’s ministers and the chief executive have an obligation to feel the political sensitivities involved.

They remained in power for almost five years, did everything they wanted, now their ability to command the respect of their constituents demand that they should exercise greater maturity and leave the office.

A common textbook on political science and democracy would explain in some detail the concept of popular sovereignty. It is a political concept that underlines that any legitimate authority exercised by a state or a government comes from the citizens. The governments tend to be legitimate because they have the consent of the population.

The sitting government was elected for a five-year term. It has completed that term. Prudence demands that it should leave the long term decisions for the next government to take. The outgoing rulers’ decisions taken during the past few weeks carry a huge price for the province to pay for many years to come.

The latest decision is that the education and health departments are allowed to procure furniture from the open market because the government’s own department concerned does not have the capacity to meet their demand, is again a huge one.

While the last minute decisions of getting their supporters inducted into government entities might win some sympathy for the parties in power, the political consequences involved are also greater.