SOME 29 senior-ranking National Guard officers, who were forced to take early retirement, returned to active service last week after the Supreme Court upheld their appeal against the initial decision. Another 26 senior officers who were forced out are also due to return to active service over the next few weeks because of a similar Supreme Court decision; most of the 55 officers are colonels, but some hold even higher rank.
The National Guard would therefore be lumbered with a host of high-ranking officers it has absolutely no need for. Worse still, many of these officers would also be entitled to promotion giving the Guard a disproportionately big number of senior-ranking officers. In fact, it had way too many even before the return of the retirees, some of whom were forced out more than six years ago. What will all these officers do now? The taxpayer will be paying them big fat salaries to do nothing, until their retirement, as the army has no need for more colonels, brigadiers and generals.
How do we manage to turn everything into farce? Is the Supreme Court to blame for issuing decisions based on the letter rather than the spirit of the law? Is it because state officials take decisions without exploring their legal basis and implications? Is it because all departments of the public sector are organised on union-imposed irrational lines, designed to serve the promotion ambitions of the staff rather than the needs of the service?
The entire public sector appears to be suffering from the “too many chiefs, not enough Indians” syndrome – something particularly true of the National Guard, in which an officer is guaranteed promotion, regardless of his abilities, after serving the required number of years in a rank. This is why the number of senior ranking officers is unjustifiably high for the size of the National Guard. Any rationally-structured army makes promotions in line with positions available. In this way, the best candidates move up the ranks, while those who miss out stay at the same rank for the rest of their career.
It appears that even such a logical arrangement is beyond the thinking of the policy-makers at the defence ministry and the politicians because it limits the scope for nepotism. Apart from the nepotism factor, this lunacy is a direct consequence of the complete unionisation of the public sector, in worker rights, such as the right to promotion is placed above the requirements of the organisation. Even the courts seem to regard these rights as inviolable.
Nobody seems remotely interested in changing this ludicrous system, even if it means that the taxpayer will now be burdened with the monthly bill for an additional 55 senior-ranking National Guard officers, who will be contributing next to nothing to the army until their retirement.
