I usually encourage the implementation of an e-government system in every department of Pakistan. As we know, there is probably no department operating in Pakistan that is free of corruption and bribery activities. So, if there is a system of clear and transparent governance, then it can be tackled in a very effective way.
It means that, let us consider a case when a department, which is a direct public-dealing department of Pakistan and is related to law enforcement, should be free of every type of corruption and bribery. So, when a person reaches out to such a department and asks them for help, they refuse to help the general public unless they give them or pay them a good bribe amount.
In this case, as we know, the officers and officials are sold for a specific amount of bribe, and they can do anything that is required for a specific amount, for specific money, for their personal gain. No matter whether it is legal or not, they will do it. On the other hand, we can say that when someone having nothing to pay as a bribe reaches out to them, they will never do their work because they know that they cannot help the officials. And, of course, if the other party is paying such a department a higher bribe amount, they will definitely help the higher-paying party.
I am not generalizing this, but yeah, in most of our public-dealing departments, it is operating in that way. So, it is very crucial and important for our system to work on the e-governance system because information technology is deepening its roots in the world. In every sector of life, there is a great scope for information technology and AI, especially.
So, it can be easily implemented in urban areas because every household, or most of them, has an internet connection or at least a cellular data connection. In that case, it is very easy for any department to shift to an e-governance system to prevent such types of bribery and corruption activities. If the request is submitted by the general public via the internet, stating that the department is required to do some of their legal work and the officer is asking them for a bribe—otherwise, no work will be done—then in this case, the officer or official will have to submit a clear reason due to which the task of that general public person was not implemented, or their help was not carried out.
In this way, there will be clear proof of work done or the reason due to which it was delayed or is not being implemented. But when it comes to a rural area, it is somehow difficult, especially in the backward and remote areas of the country, like Balochistan and some areas of Sindh and Punjab. So, in this case, we need to implement some strategies.
Because I am a student of information technology and computer sciences, I have some knowledge about it, and I would like to explain the procedure by which we can implement e-governance despite the internet shortage issue in backward and rural areas of our country.
First of all, we have to make sure that there is at least one spot in the town, village, or a small area—which is called Chak in our Punjabi land—where people can access the internet. If such a spot exists, then it is somehow possible or convenient for the public to reach that spot and submit their requests from there by connecting to the internet.
Even if no such spot is available in their village, but in some nearby town or village the internet connection is available, then it can be extended to that village. Keeping in account the budget and total resources available, we can make two to three spots at different locations in the town or village where public Wi-Fi will be available free of cost.
This will also eliminate all types of discrimination, where a person who reaches an internet café or shop with internet service available might be asked for a small fee to use the internet, which adds to corruption. Of course, this is not feasible for everyone.
So, in this case, there will be two to three Wi-Fi hotspots at different locations in the village or town, and everyone can reach those spots, connect to the internet, and submit their requests online. However, in case there is no internet provision or internet connection available in the entire district, then it becomes very difficult.
To tackle this situation, we can follow two solutions.
First of all, we should implement the USSD system, through which people can submit their requests by sending a message to a helpline or hotline number, similar to the ones provided by many of our departments. This can be very effective because, in most of our rural and backward areas where there is no internet connection, there is at least cellular connectivity. This is how they can submit their requests online and contribute to our country’s progress.
Moreover, it is very important to implement another solution called offline web-based applications. These types of applications store the request made by a person as a cookie on a computer. It will not be synchronized with the server unless it is connected to the internet. However, as soon as it is connected to the internet, the request will be submitted, and the work will be processed.
These are some strategies to ensure the implementation of an e-government system in our departments. However, this is only a short-term plan because, in the long term, we need to spread internet access across the country.
Every system has its limitations. Only a few hundred devices can connect to the same internet at a specific time, which can limit the submission of applications. Therefore, for the long term, we need to expand our internet coverage and provide the forward, backward, and remote areas with access to the internet. This will not only implement the e-government system but will also help people in these areas excel in their academic and professional careers.