Politicization of Public Administration: A Case Study of Capital City Police Officers (CCPOs) of Lahore
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61732/bj.v2i1.36Keywords:
Politicization, Public administration, CCPO Lahore, clientelism, clientelist, TransfersAbstract
The study aims to identify the reason behind the abrupt transfer of CCPOs of Lahore from 2018 to 2022. It examines the client-patron relation between these officers and political elites by reviewing literature, secondary data and through semi-structured interviews as well. It shows how public offices, specifically the police department, are politicized in Pakistan? The four elements given by Hicken in his theory of clientelism – are used to analyze the data collected through secondary sources and interviews. It is found that abrupt transfers of CCPOs of Lahore are politicized and not based on performance. The study shows the presence of client-patron relations between officers transferred to and from the CCPO post and political elites who controlled these transfers. On the basis of the findings, the following recommendations are made: political will, public participation, separation of power, non-politicization of police departments, societal changes, public awareness and merit-based promotion in order to rectify the situation.
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