There is a huge misconception amongst most Maldivians (especially those in the Civil Service) that the government has an obligation to employ all/most of its able citizen in its service. Where as, my thoughts are that, a government should operate at a minimal cost, whilst employment should be facilitated through government policies, the government is not obliged to provide it directly. At least in a democratic way of thinking, the government is a body elected by the people, to run their affairs in a participating manner. The people expect/should expect the elected government to spend their money in the most economical and appropriate manner. Which means, the government cannot and should not employ people just for the sake of giving a job, but in a more efficient manner. This was overlooked, or ignored in the 30year regime of dictator Gayoom. His policy was to win loyalty through his favors, in a cruel way.
The Civil Service Commission (CSC) came into being, at the era of democracy, but the nature of this commission is yet undetermined. Recently, due to the salary cuts, the main objective of the CSC has been to increase the salary of the civil servants. Is this right? Shouldn't their mandate be to act in the best interest of the country, while being fair to civil servants? Just because a cruel regime has increased the size of government to fits its selfish need, does it mean that following government should follow the same steps just to keep a few happy.
If a person's job is terminated, the common rumor is that " Oh, how is he going to support his family now?, he has this many dependents," etc etc. Does any one think of how many are depending on the government and its responsibilities? Why is that once a person is in Civil Service, he has to be immune from termination.
This ridiculous claim, by the CSC to re-increase the civil servants salaries, indicate that they are way out of line, and do not act in the best interest of this country. The question is, what is the purpose of this commission? They haven't created anything but nuisance since formation..!
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