The Board of Intellectual Property Organisation (IPO) is reported to have recommended termination of Director General Khaild Mahmood Bukhari to the Cabinet Division for allegedly fudging official documents and mis-stating on different accounts.
The Board is comprised of Chairman, IPO, Chairman Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA), Secretary Interior, Secretary Industries, Secretary Minfa, Senior Joint Secretary, (Regulatory Authorities) and Director General IPO.
According to the minutes of Board meeting held on November 6, 2009, signed by Chairman Shahjahan Khetran and sent to all members of the Board prior to the itemwise agenda being taken up, the Director General/ex-officio Secretary interrupted the meeting without the consent of the Chairman, and requested the Policy Board to first discuss his misconduct as described in the working paper.
He asserted that the working paper, circulated by the Chairman, was controversial and that the agenda prepared by him (DG) should be discussed. He went on to aggressively challenge the allegation that he had forged the minutes of 6th meeting of the Policy Board.
Not being an agenda item and due to the DG's confrontational approach the Chairman assured him that the matter would be discussed under the relevant agenda item of the working paper. However, the DG insisted that it be the first item discussed and the Chairman, with consent of the other members, allowed him to have his say.
Thereupon the DG claimed that he was innocent on the count of misconduct, forgery and tampering with the draft minutes of the 6th meeting as narrated in the working paper.
When confronted with the two sets of draft minutes of the sixth meeting - one prepared and submitted by the DG that indicated tampering and misreporting on resolved issues including a) scrapping of illegal appointments, b) formation of the two committees, and c) immediate enforcement of financial and administration Rules, he had no answer. He, however, insisted that his circulated minutes should be taken as authentic and was reluctant to accept the former Chairman's draft minutes.
One member of the Board showed him the draft minutes, authenticated and circulated by the former Chairman and questioned him as to how could he produce the 2nd and 3rd version of minutes and circulate these in suppression of those of the former Chairman. The DG was unable to explain or deny his wrongful hand-written statement in para 11 attached with the working paper. The members expressed their complete dissatisfaction and dismay over his conduct in this matter and dismissed his stance altogether.
Chairman noted that the DG is not co-operative and has remained hostile to him, disregards his directions and generates controversies in official matters. He further accused the DG of executing decisions not taken by the Board, taking advantage of the absence of an appointed Chairman, and in the intervening period prior to his own appointment as Chairman ignoring warnings by the Cabinet Secretary and Senior Joint Secretary.
The DG also, he alleged, tried to manoeuvre the meeting to cover up non-compliance and implementation of the decisions arrived at in the 6th meeting, by preparing a minutes working paper of 19 items, conveniently omitting the essential agenda items, 'the approval of the minutes' and 'follow-up of the decisions', so that these remained unquestioned and concealed from the Board.
He even tried hard to avoid/delay in holding the 7th meeting on dates fixed by the Chairman, urging him to postpone the meeting indefinitely till the reconstitution of the Policy Board through an addition of 7 more handpicked members, and sending their names directly to the Prime Minister for approval.
The members expressed their annoyance over the attitude and conduct of the DG, his disregard for the Chairman, the Policy Board and the government, and noted that such an attitude does not behove a DG/ex-officio Secretary to the Policy Board. The Board also dismissed the DG's allegation of 'Zulm' and 'sins' committed against him by the former Chairman, which remained unsupported by any reason or evidence put forth, by him.
The members unanimously resolved that the draft minutes of the 6th Policy Board meeting as authenticated and approved by the former Chairman on 4th July, 2009 were approved and placed on record as the original and authentic documents, specifically implying that all the new recruitments stand scrapped.
The DG was directed to take measures to implement these decisions, without any delay or excuse, and report the progress to the Chairman/Policy Board. The Board also decided that Cabinet Division should immediately notify the draft Service and Financial Rules of IPO.
The Chairman as an overall head of the organisation, as provided in the Ordinance, would from henceforth approve all agendas of the Board meetings, its working paper, the drafts of minutes, and all other summaries, notes and other referral matters to the federal government as well as to the Prime Minister. The working paper draft minuets etc should be signed on each page for its authenticity.
The Board also decided that the DG, in his official capacity, was an ex-officio Secretary to the Policy Board, and should adhere to the directions, guidance of the Chairman, as binding on him in para.8 of the Ordinance, and further powers, or part of powers as delegated to him by the Policy Board.
The DG submitted an unconditional apology before the members promising that he would adhere to these directions in future mending his ways, manner and attitudes. He submitted to delimitations, in exercise of his powers as DG IPO and Secretary to the Board, as are or would be determined by the Board, in accordance with the Ordinance/Service Rules of IPO.
The Chairman informed the members that the decision taken in the 6th meeting with respect to termination of those recruited was inadequately followed. Out of 56 officers/officials, 10 have taken stay order from Sindh High Court. The remaining 46 officials were continuing in their posts in the IPO with pay and benefits, and the DG was reluctant to implement the orders of termination.
The Chairman also accused the DG of misleading the court in order to benefit them, against the decision of the Board and the federal government. The matter of adding seven more members from the public sector was discussed in context of the decision of the 6th meeting, and it was agreed that this required more interaction with different stakeholders of the private sector.
Further, the former Chairman had informed the Board that it also has the discretion to co-opt any Board members. However, it delegated no authority whatsoever to the DG/Ex-officio Secretary to the Board, to initiate and recommend 7 more names entirely of his choice directly to the Prime Minister without consulting, over and above the head of the organisation and the Policy Board itself.
It was the prerogative of the Federal Government to appoint the members to the Board and the Chairman to recommend any such names by consensus, that may be deemed suitable to strengthen the Policy Board structure, in the interest of the organisation. This was agreed unanimously.
The Board decided that the Chairman may recommend any such names to the federal government as may be suggested by the Board members, the Chairman, from the private sector, as deemed necessary, to be considered in the next meeting.
The matter of delegation of powers to Chairman was briefly discussed. The Chairman informed that in exercise of para.8 he was entrusted to absolve himself as the Chairman Policy Board and head of IPO, to guide, direct and oversee the organisation and the DG in discharge of his duties.
The DG was reluctant to accept this and was totally adamant not to follow these strictures by action both in words and letter. On all the occasions, as quoted in the working paper, and ever since, the chairman has taken over, DG has denied and blatantly refused to carry out his instructions.
The DG has by his erratic actions either undermined his rightful position and authority, or refuted it all together claiming that he was the Chief Executive of the Organisation, having no obligation to receive any instruction from the Chairman, Policy Board.
This defiance is manifest, by not adhering, to even the holding of this meeting, not submitting the working papers and trying to bring about a conflict situation within the organisation, to the extent of distorting the decisions and misleading the court.
The DG has further shown and expressed his dissatisfaction of the Ordinance itself passed in 2005 asserting that it was outdated. The members strongly objected to his assertion, informing him that the Ordinance had become a law and valid in all its definitions and be put to practice. It did not require any amendment or revision as envisioned by the DG/Ex-Officio Secretary and was beyond his scope.
The DG, whereupon insisted that he was a member of the Policy Board and therefore was in a position to make such a suggestion. The members corrected him, at that point, that he was the DG IPO, and only in that capacity, he was an ex-officio Secretary to the Policy Board and not its member.
The members agreed that the Chairman, Policy Board, may be delegated service and financial powers by the Board as provided for in the Ordinance and as in the pending service and financial rules. Till these are notified, these federal government rules may be followed. This may also be brought up in next meeting.
In final analysis due to his continuous defiance to the Chairman, the Policy Board was constrained to take serious action in this regard. The members noted with concern that beside the foresaid matters, he had been a divisive element within the Organisation, showed hostility to the Chairman and the Board members and had lost his credibility as an official of the Organisation. On suggestion of a member (Zia-ur-Rehman) and seconded by the members present, it was agreed to recommend the DG's transfer/removal from his charge by the Federal Government.
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