ISLAMABAD: While various inquiries against officials of Pakistan Standard Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) remain pending at the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), the Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST) has initiated a departmental inquiry against secretary PSQCA, who has been sitting at the post for over a decade now.
As per documents available with Profit, the ministry had issued a charge sheet against PSQCA Secretary Ghulam Umar Kazi (BS-19) on November 16, while constituting a three-member inquiry committee to probe allegations against him.
Kazi, who is considered the most influential official at PSQCA, successfully retained during the governments of PPP and PML-N despite various inquiries regarding corruption, irregularities at NAB and FIA. He managed to hold the key post in the authority despite repeated directions by parliamentary committees to suspend officials of PSQCA facing inquiries.
Insiders pricy to the development say that Federal Minister of Science and Technology Senator Shibli Faraz and secretary MoST, while taking notice of the corruption and irregularities at PSQCA, have finally decided to act against the official.
The charge sheet issued by MoST Federal Secretary Dr Akhtar Nazi states that while posted as secretary, Kazi failed to supervise the recruitment processes in the authority.
“PSQCA management working under your administrative control hesitated to provide relevant records to the fact finding inquiry committee. You have been found responsible for mismanagement with regard to deficient advertisement, processing deficient working papers, non-preparation of TORs for the testing agency, maintenance of regional quota roaster, not shortlisting candidates on the basis of advertised criteria,” the charge sheet states.
If found guilty, disciplinary action against Kazi may be dismissed from service.
The secretary PSQCA has been asked to submit written defence to the charges within 14 days, explaining why disciplinary proceedings should not be taken against him.
Meanwhile, the ministry has constituted a three-member inquiry committee which includes Joint Technological Adviser (Convener) Ashfaq Ahmad Memos, MoST Deputy Secretary Syed Abdul Manan and Section Officer Ashar Mehmood. However, despite showing reservation regarding provision of documents of PSQCA employees under the secretary, the ministry has not suspended the said official to avail the requisite evidence for the inquiry committee.
Earlier, during a meeting of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Science and Technology it was disclosed that dozens of inquiries had been pending against the ministry’s officials at FIA and NAB for years. Subsequently, the committee had asked former secretary MoST to examine the cases and suspend corrupt officials at its attached department, PSQCA, till the conclusion of all inquiries.
As per documents. these cases are related to corruption, malpractice, misuse of authority, illegal appointments, illegal promotions, violations of rules, violation of recruitment processes, and irregularities in daily workings, employees holding posts without DPC in BPS-19, manipulating records, irrelevant ‘trainings’ in foreign countries, and assets beyond known source of income.
