Promotion quotas: Admin cadre officials stage demo against reform proposal
Later, 15-20 BASA leaders sat for a meeting with the ministry’s Senior Secretary Md Mokhles Ur Rahman and submitted their demands and proposals in a written format
Highlights:
- Currently, 75% of the deputy secretary posts are reserved for admin officials
- Public admin reform commission recommends making it 50%
- Association leaders meet public admin senior secretary, submits demands, proposals
Hundreds of officials from the Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) administration cadre staged a demonstration at the Secretariat today, voicing their opposition to a proposal by the Public Administration Reform Commission to reduce their promotional quota to the rank of deputy secretary.
Currently, 75% of deputy secretary positions are reserved for administration cadre officials, with the remaining 25% allocated to other cadres.
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On 17 December, the reform commission's chief Abdul Muyeed Chowdhury told reporters that they will recommend keeping 50% of the deputy secretary posts for admin officials and the other 50% for officials from other cadres when it comes to promotion.
Led by Bangladesh Administrative Service Association (BASA) President Md Anwar Ullah, the protesters gathered at the Ministry of Public Administration in the morning.
Later, a delegation of 15-20 BASA leaders met with Senior Secretary Md Mokhles Ur Rahman and submitted their demands and proposals in a written format.
After the meeting, Mokhles assured that the ministry would hold further discussions with BASA before finalising the commission's recommendations.
"There will not be any misunderstanding between officials from different cadres after this meeting," he said.
He added that BASA's written proposal would be forwarded to the reform commission for review.
Push for a separate administrative service
In recent weeks, administration cadre officials have intensified their campaign for the establishment of an independent "Bangladesh Administrative Service." They have created a distinctive logo to represent their demand, which has been widely shared on social media platforms like Facebook.
Both junior and senior officials have taken to social media to express their solidarity. One official wrote, "An independent and free Bangladesh Administrative Service could be the most effective reform in public administration."
The active participation of administration cadre officials in this movement, particularly on social media, has drawn significant public attention.
