State minister for Ports and Shipping and Port Qasim Authority (PQA) Chairman are said to be at loggerheads over the employment of around 100 people in PQA through what sources said improper channel. According to sources, Prime Minister Task Force (PMTF) had recently approved employment of around 100 people in PQA.
Most of the new appointees were PPP workers from Lyari, who would be serving PQA as peons, security guards, etc, in different grades from 2 to 4. After PMTF clearance to new appointments, the State Minister for Ports and Shipping, Nabeel Gabol, issued appointment letters.
However, PQA Chairman Afsar Din Talpur not only stopped issuing advertisements for more jobs but also withdrew the appointment letters, issued by Gabol. "It is between the minister and the chairman", as the appointment letters issued by the former were challenged by the latter, said a PQA official.
Sources, however, claimed that the State Minister was using his influence and called an urgent meeting of PQA officials on December 29, 2008 to ensure making of new appointments. Even Director of Management Account was suspended, on his refusal to attend the meeting which, according to him, was set to decide the fate of an unwarranted job, sources added.
But, to avoid suspension, the Director had to attend the meeting, sources said, adding that the state minister had also locked horns with the labour union at Port Qasim. PQA officials see fault lying in PMTF which had, for the second time, come through an improper channel. "In legal terms, any new induction in PQA should come through the ministry, but the Task Force is directly clearing the deals, without consulting the ministry," they added.
They claimed that recently the Task Force had, in the same way, sent a grade 17 officer to fill the slot of deputy secretary of PQA, without taking the ministry on board. "Such things should be carried out through proper channel," they maintained. Neither the state minister nor PQA chairman was available for comments on the controversial issue.
Dozens of PPP workers from Lyari demonstrated outside Karachi Press Club on Thursday and raised slogans against PQA chief and Director General PMTF for blocking recruitment of the long deprived people of Lyari in PQA.
Comments
Comments are closed.