ISLAMABAD: The Federal Cabinet has rejected a summary of Ministry of Industries and Production (MoI&P) on appointment of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Pakistan Gems and Jewellery Development Company (PGJDC), saying that none of the candidates fulfils merit, well-informed sources told Business Recorder.

The Industries & Production Division briefed the Cabinet that the Pakistan Gems and Jewellery Development Company (PGJDC) was established in 2006 as a 'not for profit company' under the Companies Ordinance, 1984 (now Companies Act 2017), as a subsidiary of Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC), under the administrative control of the Industries & Production Division. The guiding aim of the Company was to make precious stone cutting and jewellery manufacturing in Pakistan competitive at the international level, by supporting the value chain and ancillary trades.

Shahid Iqbal Qureshi, a member of Board of Directors of PGJDC, was assigned the look-after charge of Chief Executive Officer (CEO), PGJDC, on October 25, 2019, for a period of three months or till the appointment of a regular incumbent, whichever was earlier. Later, in pursuance of the approval of the Cabinet, the Industries and Production Division assigned additional charge of the post of CEO to Joint Secretary (Administration & Finance) of the Division, for a period of three months from December 8, 2020 or till the appointment of a regular CEO, whichever was earlier.

The position of CEO, PGJDC, was advertised in national press on September 1, 2020. Twenty-nine people applied for the post and ten were shortlisted for interviews by the Board of Directors (BoD) PGJDC, as recommended by the Human Resource and Nomination Committee of BoD.

During its 40th Board meeting held on 30th November, 2020, the BoD of PGJDC conducted interviews of ten shortlisted candidates. After due deliberation and keeping in view the laid down criteria, the BoD, unanimously, recommended a panel comprising the following three candidates for appointment as CEO, PGJDC, with merit points indicated against each: (i) Naveed Athar Sheikh; (ii) Engr. Muhammad Yousaf and; (iii) Shakoor Ahmed. Upon the recommendation of the Board, the credentials of the shortlisted candidates were scrutinized for the fulfillment of all the documentary/codal requirements.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021