People’s Party pushing favourites in cushy jobs

By Ansar Abbasi

ISLAMABAD: After some highly controversial appointments of exiled friends on lucrative positions, the PPP-led coalition government is now pushing favourites and party loyalists for important jobs.

This is being done in such a hurry that in some cases, private recommendation letters on the PPP letterheads are also being forwarded, along with federal ministers’ directives, to different government agencies. Such party letters today make part of official files.

These appointments are being made in addition to those being processed through the Task Force on Recruitment, which is seen as the latest version of the previously ill reputed Peoples Placement Bureau.

The Task Force, as reported earlier, is headed by two political appointees and close associates of Asif Ali Zardari, one of them enjoying the status of a federal minister. It primarily deals with BS-1 to BS-16 appointments in the government departments.

Official documents, including directives issued by some of the federal ministers, available with The News, show it is yet another crude method of appointment, proving that favouritism instead of merit and the rule of law was being followed.

In one case, Information Minister Sherry Rehman, who is also acting as the health minister, has recommended the appointment of a PPP supporter in London as adviser, special assistant or consultant to the health minister or “against any suitable post falling under the health ministry”.

On a PPP letterhead, one Dr Mirza Ikhtiar Baig, deputy coordinator Peoples Business Forum, writes to the information minister on May 20: “Dear Ms Sherry Rehman: Dr Mukhtar Bhutto, a diehard PPP supporter, had close contacts with Shaheed Benazir Bhutto in London. Our Quaid also helped him in his medical studies in the UK. Dr Mukhtar Bhutto was a great support to me in my election campaign. I am forwarding his letter of request with his CV for your kind consideration for any suitable position with the request to kindly do the needful.”

The attached CV of the PPP supporter, which too is now part of official record, says: “I am a strong devotee of my beloved mother like the Pakistan People’s Party...” He sees the information minister as a “Roshan Meenar” for the party workers and hopes that he would not be disappointed and given the opportunity “to serve Pakistan and Pakistani, subsequently our Pakistan People’s Party”.

Following the receipt of the above recommendation, the information minister’s office formally referred the case to the secretary health under the signatures of Rao Tehsin Ali Khan, Director General, to information minister.

The recommendation letter of Dr Mirza Ikhtiar Baig and the CV of Dr Mukhtar Bhutto were also attached with the request formally referred to the secretary health. The letter issued by Sherry Rehman’s office on June 5 said: “Enclosed please find an application of Dr Mukhtar Bhutto, recommended by Dr Mirza Ikhtiar Baig, Deputy Coordinator, People’s Business Forum, requesting for appointment as Adviser/Special Assistant/Consultant to the Ministry of Health or any suitable alternative in the said Ministry....”

Since the health ministry could not appoint adviser, special assistant or consultant on its own and without the approval of the prime minister, it forwarded the minister’s directive, along with attached recommendation letter and the CV to all programme managers and project coordinators, leading health projects under the health ministry, with the request that they should indicate the position as per qualification of the PPP supporter for his appointment.

In yet another case, a PPP MNA Tasneem Ahmed Qureshi approached the health minister with a request that a serving income additional commissioner Dr Malik Muhammad Khan Awan should be appointed in any of the leading health ministry programmes.

Despite the fact that inviting such political interference into service matters by a serving bureaucrat tantamounts to misconduct under the Estacode — the book of law, rules, policies, etc, governing civil bureaucracy — still Sherry Rehman’s Director General Rao Tehsin Ali Khan wrote to the secretary health: “Enclosed please find a self-explanatory request of Dr Malik Muhammd Khan Awan, Additional Commissioner, Legal-I, Large Taxpayer Unit, Lahore, on the subject above (Requisition of services of Dr Malik Muhammad Khan Awan from Federal Board of Revenue to Ministry of Health) noted above. The minister has desired that a report may please be sent to this office for the issuance of orders of the minister.”

The health ministry in this case too, referred the minister’s directive, along with the taxman’s application, to all programme managers and project coordinators under it to indicate the vacant position as per Awan’s qualification for onward submission of a report to the health minister (read information minister).

Sherry Rehman, when contacted, denied that she had issued any such directive to any government department. When asked that the directives were issued by her office under the signatures of her DG, she expressed her ignorance, saying, “Not that I know of.”

The information minister said that MNAs and others, including journalists, bring job requests to her but she never compromises on merit and seeks appointments only through the Placement Bureau (she probably meant Task Force on Recruitment).

While there are reports of several other ministers involved in similar practices, Sherry Rehman’s case is interesting for the reason that she is one of the foreign qualified ministers, who during her journalistic carrier, has been reflecting on the issue of merit, good governance and the rule of law.