Complying with the orders of the Supreme Court, the management of the Port Qasim Authority (PQA) has fired 99 employees, including senior officials, over submitting fake educational and experience certificates as well as irregularities in their hiring process, which had taken place during the tenures of the two previous governments.
After the PQA informed the apex court of the development, the latter disposed of a contempt-of-court petition filed against the authority and the Ministry of Ports & Shipping.
Petitioner Abdul Jabbar Memon, who is the main petitioner of the “illegal PQA appointments” case, had filed a contempt-of-court petition over the authority’s non-compliance of the Supreme Court’s orders regarding action against illegal and irregular employments in the PQA.
After hearing the arguments of Memon and PQA counsel Hafiz SA Rehman, a three-member bench – comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, Justice Azmat Saeed and Justice Mushir Alam – disposed of the contempt-of-court petition.
PQA Chairman Agha Jan Akhtar had appeared before the apex court and submitted that appropriate action was being taken against the illegal and irregular appointees in light of the court’s orders.
According to the official copy of the statement available with The News, the PQA management has terminated the services of seven officers between the grades of 17 and 20 as well as 92 between the grades of 2 and 20.
Grade-20 officer Brig (retd) Kamran Jalil, director general of administration, was sacked because he had joined the authority during the active service of the Pakistan Army without acquiring permission or retirement from the army.
Aadil Rasheed (director of environment & safety), Mansoob Ali (director of private sector project), Haris Hamid (director of human resources), Qutubuddin Mullah (PQA secretary) and Tariq Aziz (deputy manager of marketing) were sacked because they had submitted fake educational and experience certificates.
Grade-20 officer Muhammad Noman Khan, director general of planning & development, was sacked over submitting fake experience certificates, and the matter has been referred to the National Accountability Bureau.
Well-placed sources within the PQA have informed The News that 28 security guards working for the authority were also sacked because they had been absent from their duties ever since the targeted operation was launched against criminals in Karachi.
Source: thenews
