Interviews to pick ETPB chief put off

ISLAMABAD: Interviews scheduled for the post of chairman of the Evacuee Trust Property Board, a subsidiary of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, have been suddenly postponed, causing disappointment and anxiety among the candidates.

These interviews were scheduled for November 29 but on November 28 candidates were messaged that the interviews have been postponed. The new date will be announced later. The ministry had invited applications for this important post and 23 candidates were shortlisted. A selection board has been formed under the chairmanship of Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Aneeq Ahmed. According to sources, the post has been vacant for six months. On April 22, 2022, Syed Habib-ur-Rehman Geelani, former federal secretary of the railways, was appointed to this post. He was appointed by the Selection Board and given a three-year contract but he could only work for 13 months as he was forced to resign. Thereafter, Additional Secretary of the Ministry, Atta-ur-Rehman, was given the additional charge of the post until the appointment of a new regular chairman. Now he has become the secretary to Religious Affairs. The secretary is the appellate authority against the decisions of the ETPB, so he can no longer work on the post. Senior retired and serving bureaucrats are in the fray for the post and lobbying continues vigorously.