BCS Information Association Demands Cancellation of First Press Secretary Appointment from Administration
At a time when information and data are considered the “new minerals” of the Fourth Industrial Revolution — and fact checking and debunking have become the primary shields ensuring sovereignty and security on the digital superhighway — the practical knowledge and skills essential for such roles appear to have been disregarded in the appointment of the first Press Secretary at the Consulate General Office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and the Bangladesh Mission in Dubai, UAE.
Two officers from the Administration Cadre have been appointed to this position for four years without adhering to the outlined ‘Charter of Duties’.
On 16 November, Sunday, the BCS Information Association strongly protested a circular issued by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting concerning this appointment and promotion.
On 17 November, Monday, the Association’s Vice President Mohammad Ali Sarkar and General Secretary Md. Mamun Or Rashid signed a statement urging the authorities to cancel the appointment immediately.
It may be recalled that officers from the BCS (Information–General) Cadre have long been posted as First Secretary (Press) at Bangladesh’s foreign missions. Even in the recruitment circular issued by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on 13 January for this post, preference was explicitly stated for candidates experienced in media and public communication.
Yet the two individuals appointed to these posts violate that requirement, as neither possesses such experience. One appointee to the Dubai Consulate is currently serving as a Senior Assistant Secretary in the Health Education and Family Welfare Division. The other is working as an Additional Deputy Commissioner at the Dhaka South City Corporation.
Consequently, professionals in the field have expressed surprise at such appointments, calling them “barriers to the growth of professionalism and discriminatory in nature.”
Technology experts believe that automation is needed in government recruitment and promotion processes to ensure selection of the most suitable candidate for each position. They argue that such systems would help the administration avoid embarrassing and ironic situations like this.
DBTech/IH/OR
