SINCE the list of Johi Municipal Committee employees was posted on social media, there have been demands for making public similar lists in other towns and cities. In the long list, majority of the employees are white-collar of ficials, who have been drawing salaries of sanitary workers without ever having delivered such duties.

Instead, they are found active in politics and other activities. For the last so many months, people in Johi have been protesting against piles of garbage and chocked sewerage lines. I, too, for the last six months have been reminding the municipal committee about the choked drainage system in Ward II, which is inhabited by the poorest of the poor, majority of whom are daily-wagers who cannot make several visits to the municipal of fice where relevant staff rarely show up.

During recent rains, water from upper parts of town flowed into the ward. This happened after the municipal staff, despite objection f rom the ward residents, drained rainwater f rom the main road through pumps to this ward.

I met Dadu deputy commissioner who called the municipal administrator and asked him to address the matter, but days passed by without anything happening on the ground. The obvious reason is that a dozen or so sanitary workers are hired on daily wages to do the work for which the salary is taken away by 377 absent whitecollar of ficials. These daily-wagers are assigned about 10-12 streets in the vicinity of the residences of area influentials.

The fact is that employee absenteeism has affected almost every public-sector department. There is little or no hope that somebody at the top would take notice of this extremely serious matter. Perhapseverybody is aware and involved directly or indirectly, or finds it convenient to mind his/her own business. There is a need to investigate the matter and fire those found involved in illegal activities.

GulsherPanhwer Johi