Complaints against appointment of PSQCA DG referred to secretary

ISLAMABAD: The Establishment Division has sent complaints against the appointment of Pakistan Standards & Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) Director General to the Secretary, Ministry of Science and Technology, for an investigation.

Three complaints have been sent by the Cabinet Secretariat of the Establishment Division to the Federal Secretary Science and Technology through an office memorandum. The complaints were lodged by Mohammad Azam, Akhtar A Baghio and Prof. Dr. Anjum Khalid, sources said. Allegations have been made against the persons included in the panel for the appointment of PSQCA DG.

Dr. HU Khan, Muhammad Imran Haider and Zainul Abidin are included in the panel. The Federal Secretary Science and Technology has been asked to investigate the charges and take action. Complainant Akhtar Bhagio said that the 18 candidates, who were shortlisted by the scrutiny committee, were not included in the sent panel. He said that the advertisement for the post appeared on April 23, 2024, but the interviews of the first candidates were held on June 25 and the second on September 20, 2024, though the process is required to be completed within 120 days.

A senior official of the ministry said that two of the complainants did not even have their address in the applications, while one complainant made only allegations that had nothing to do with the reality. The reply has been sent to the Establishment Division, he added.