Pemra suspends officials to save acting chief from court action
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) Thursday issued five notifications apparently to save acting chairman and executive member Dr Jabbar from superior courtÂ’s action against the irregularities committed during the large-scale recruitment in the authority last year.
These notifications (copies available with The News) suspended/transferred different vocal officials who had raised voices against these irregularities, especially with regard to more than 385 appointments made against 119 advertised posts.
Chairman PEMRA, Mushtaq Malik, who is on forced leave now, had told The News that these appointments were made by a recruitment committee headed by Dr Jabbar. The appointees mostly included the sons, daughters, sisters and wives of the present and previous federal and provincial cabinet members of the PPP governments. Against 18 posts 67 persons were appointed in grade 17 as assistant general managers, most of them either did not appear or failed in the test, according to documentary evidence available with The News. When four different regular employees of PEMRA who were rejected for higher positions during this recruitment process approached the superior courts, PEMRA offered them appointment letters and later refused to accept their joining reports. These letters too are available with The News.
Dr Jabbar who was not available for comments on Thursday told this reporter a few days back that all appointments were made by following the due process. He said that the appointment letters supposedly issued to four persons who had challenged the whole recruitment process in the court were fake letters. GM HR PEMRA Safdar Rehman and Mushtaq Malik, however, have confirmed to The News the issuance of these appointment letters.
Different petitions were filed in Lahore, Balochistan and Islamabad High Courts against this process of appointment. The Lahore High Court (LHC) was informed that most of those who passed the written test with top marks were not hired while those who failed or did not even appear in the test were selected.
Dr Jabbar in his reply to the LHC submitted a fake merit list. Chairman PEMRA Mushtaq Malik while talking to The News had admitted that Dr Jabbar had submitted fake merit list in the court.
Thursday’s notifications suspended both Wajahat Abbas and Khalid Mehmood who had challenged these appointments in the court. Similarly, Muhammad Ali, AGM HR in PEMRA’s head office was also suspended for issuing appointment letters to the above two officials as they qualified for the position according to the results of written tests. Through another notification all rightful notifications were cancelled. Through yet another official notification GM HR Safdar Rehman was transferred from his position.
Source: The News
Date:3/11/2011
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