ISLAMABAD: The Cabinet Committee on Institutional Reforms (CCIR) has proposed a way for the federal government to resolve the issue of 799 government servants appointed since 2016 in different ministries/divisions without cabinet’s approval, Pakistan Today learnt on Monday.
The aforementioned proposal will be presented in the federal cabinet meeting for ratification.
A committee comprising the secretary of the Establishment Division, the additional secretary of the Cabinet Division, and the additional secretary of the Law and Justice Division was earlier formed to identify irregular appointments and this committee, after scrutiny of available records, identified 799 irregular appointments.
Out of this, 500 cases were regarding the Airport Security Force (ASF), Aviation Division, whereas 299 cases related to different other divisions/departments.
Establishment Division had recommended CCIR to consider regularising the 500 cases of ASF, including appointments in BS 17, 18, 19. The only position not given for regularisation was of the director-general of ASF.
However, the position of DG ASF may be kept unchanged with the approval of the federal cabinet.
In order to prevent the cabinet from being overburdened, it was recommended that each division scrutinize individual cases and move summaries for ex-post facto approval.
Moreover, these summaries should be moved in consultation with the concerned organizations.
Furthermore, the establishment division recommended that all divisions must exercise vigilance so that appointments are made only by the competent appointing authority even in cases of look after charge, additional charge, acting charge, current charge etc.
Earlier, the Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Azam Khan, in a letter to all federal secretaries and heads of divisions, had directed them to send the lists of appointments without prior approval since 2016 by April 30, so that they could be declared illegal.
This list would be presented by the cabinet secretary before the federal cabinet on May 5, Azam had said at the time.
“The list shall, inter alia, include all such appointments also which were made pursuant to the delegated powers of the Federal Cabinet to a Federal Minister/Secretary, being illegal, void and without jurisdiction,” reads letter of Secretary to the Prime Minister, dated April 24, 2020.
The decision was previously also validated by the Islamabad High Court (IHC), which had declared such appointments as “without jurisdiction and void”.
