Officers – replace a positively awful attitude with an awfully positive attitude
This was the advice given by a member of the RAC as communicated to all the Chief Commissioners by the Directorate of Publicity and Public Relations, CBEC, recently. The Directorate had circulated the Citizens’ charter to members of the RAC and one of the members responded with the above comment. The concerned citizen has a lot more to say about the citizens’ charter and the department.
• Truly speaking the Citizen’s Charter, even today is adorning only the walls of the Officers of Customs and Central Excise. It has not come down to occupy a place even on the table of the officers let alone in their minds and hearts, it has virtually been forgotten by the officers and forsaken by The Trade.
• Any amount of liberalization and simplification will be futile if the “attitude” of the officers, especially at the operating level is not positive.
• Many officers possess a positively awful attitude. This has to be replaced with an awfully positive attitude.
• So long as this attitudinal change is not brought about lock, stock and barrel, any Citizen’s Charter or even a more refined document will remain vague, vagarious and jejune. Therefore a total re-engineering or restructuring of attitude of the officers is the need of the hour. Surely how to do it may be a big question mark. However sooner or later nay sooner than later we have to do this …We must.
• This mindset of the head of an organization comprising of a unit big or small, can do the trick
• it has been my experience, in a majority of cases, that whenever a new head of the organization resumes or relives himself of that post, the trade in general gets a feeling of ennui that “the sun rose having nothing to do and set having seen nothing new.” This should not be.
• I am a greater believer in the ability and agility of our Departmental officers. Alas. “something”, “somewhere” debilitates them from exhibiting their true worth, we must unwind this mystery and ensure that every Officer acts worthy of his position in service to this country. Whoever is instrumental in doing this, would be architects of victorious India.