Bureaucrats vs technocrats

ISLAMABAD: Appointment of Syed Shabbar Zaidi, as Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Friday was challenged in Islamabad High Court (IHC) as petitioner said under FBR act the appoint is illegal.

Petitioner Ali Muhammad an Inland Revenue officer of grade 19 has challenged the appointment of Syed Shabbar Zaidi as Chairman FBR and requested the court to set aside the appointment.

Ali Muhammad in his petition states that Shabbar Zaidi was working as partner of private chartered accountant firm when government has appointed him as Chairman FBR on May 9 on ‘honorary basis/pro bono basis.

The petition said “according to the law laid down by the IHC, under the FBR Act, a person from private sector may be appointed Chairman of the FBR in the exceptional and extraordinary circumstances through a duly advertised process.”

Giving a reference of court order petition states that previously in 2012 a person from private sector Arshad Ali Hakim was appointed on contact basis for two year in same way by the government but the court set aside the appointment.

The petitioner argues that there is no law under which chairman FBR can be appoint on honorary basis. He further states that Syed Shabbar Zaidi has “neither requisite experience nor qualification in tax administration nor of even working in any significant magisterial or administrative position in any private organisation comparable to FBR.”

The petitioner has requested Islamabad High Court to declare appointment of Syed Shabbar Zaidi as Chairman FBR as illegal and restrain him from working as chairman till the final decision of the court over the petition.

Meanwhile, the appointment of Umar Khan Lodhi as MD of Utility Stores Corporation (USC) was also challenged in the IHC. The appointment has been challenged by Senior General Manager USC Wajid Ali Khan who prayed that he be included in the process of appointment of MD according to his seniority.