Business community has expressed strong reservations over the selection process for the post of Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) sans private sector representation on the Board of Directors (BoD) of the authority.
Talking to this scribe, the vice president of the Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), Iftikhar Ahmad said that private sector is the big stakeholder in matters relating to business and decisions made in this regard.
The Board of Directors of SMEDA that has once each member from all four provinces, AJK and Gilgit-Baltistan and public sector representatives is a consultative body that prepares policy framework and guideline for the authority also play crucial role in the selection of the CEO. But, despite the passage of two years it is yet to be re-constituted.
The summary of the names of the Board of Directors was sent to Adviser to PM on Industries and Trade, Abdul Razzak Dawood six months back, but the issuance of notification in this regard is still awaited while on the other hand, ex-officio directors are scheduled to select CEO for the authority today (Monday).
Similarly, the position of the CEO has also been vacant since the resignation of the ex-CEO Sher Ayub six months back.
Atif Haleem, president, Peshawar Chamber of Small Traders and Industry (PCSTI) has also called for taking of the stakeholders into confidence before any such important step. He said that such hasty steps always create problems for the government. He called for addressing all legal hurdles before making such crucial appointments.
Zulfikar Thaver, President of the Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME) was highly critical of the step motherly treatment to SME sector by the present government.
Similar reservations have also been expressed by the Leader of Businessman Panel, Nisar Anjum, former presidents, FPCCI, Haji Ghulam Ali, Usman Zakria, former vice president, Mirza Rehman and president, Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), Engineer Maqsood Anwar Pervez.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2019