Cabinet reshuffle

It is in this very month last year, i.e. on May 22nd, that the 60-member jumbo cabinet was reduced to 53 along with redistribution of portfolios among 11 ministers. By last year's standards therefore, what the government has done this time around is to bring down the number of ministries rather than downsizing the cabinet as such. The number of ministers more or less remains intact. Four ministries have been merged into two, thereby reducing the number of ministries from 39 to 37. The resultant reduction in the paraphernalia might be cost-saving but only marginally so.

The move is said to be a part of a plan to 'downsize the government.' But the government is already past the halfway point of its tenure, so that we are likely to continue with a still bloated cabinet for the most part of its term. We would of course like to be proved wrong on this. As is well-known, there has been pressure from different quarters -- development partners, national media and civil society leaders -- to reduce the cabinet size so as to save cost while injecting greater efficiency into it.

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The only redeeming feature, however, is the merger of four ministries into two. As for the reallocation of the portfolios of six ministers and two state ministers, one does not know whether efficiency and honesty have been rewarded or not. New faces have not replaced old hats.

After a series of reallocation of portfolios, some amalgamation of ministries and jettisoning of a few members since March, 2002, the cabinet still remains oversized leaving ample room for not only reduction and budgetary saving but also infusion of efficiency.