Afghanistan is a country where corruption is rampant. It stands among the most corrupt countries of the world. Government line ministries and their sub offices in 34 provinces of Afghanistan are grabbed by the evil of corruption like never before. The people are disappointed for paying huge amounts of their hard-earned money in bribes to government officials.

There root causes of corruption are many but government’s unwillingness to fight it in true sense is the main reason for why nepotism, embezzlement, cronyism, bribery and other forms and shapes of corruption have been growing in the country. On the other hand, it also depends on the sincerity and determination of government authorities who are charged with responsibilities of running a ministry or any other government or non-government organization.

In this unclean environment, fortunately there are also officials who have said to no to corruption. Indeed, a true and patriotic Afghan will never involve himself in corruption as he knows it is taboo in Islam and prohibited by the prevailing laws of the country. One such man, who has gained much appreciation from the public for his sincere efforts and service, isCol. Sayed Omar Saboor, Director General of Afghanistan’s Passport Office. Since he has taken the charge of the Passport Office, he has brought certain crucial reforms which have led to better performance of the said office.

Obtaining passport was never so easy in Afghanistan. Previously issuance of passports took several weeks for common people but only a few hours for people with strong recommendations or people who bribed the officials. People had to wait for hours and even days in long queues as getting passport was not less than conquering a country. But now, one will have his passport in his hand on the second day after he submits his application. This is a great improvement. Additionally, now people can get machine-readable passports. This a plus point for the image of Afghanistan at international level.

Col. Saboor has also setup a Facebook page. The page calls for people’s cooperation and appreciates them to report corrupt officials and inbox their complaints directly to the page admin.

People’s satisfaction can be deemed a great achievement for a public organization. The performance showed by the Passport Office is widely acclaimed by the people and the credit goes to its top management.

Passport Office serves as a model for other government organizations. It is time government authorities should also realize the responsibilities and duties they have before the nation detach themselves from the evil of corruption and serve the public in sincere manner. In such a way not only corruption will be eliminated but also the country can move towards development and prosperity.