Current, former PA speakers found guilty of misuse of authority

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Services Tribunal has held the current and former speakers of the provincial assembly, Asad Qaiser and Mushtaq Ahmad Ghani respectively, for promoting cronyism and nepotism during appointments to the assembly secretariat. “By now it has been established beyond any shadow of doubt that the former and the present Speaker etc. have one point agenda to promote cronyism, nepotism and favouritism at the cost of merit, transparency, fairness, equality and justice,” the three-member tribunal ruled in a detailed judgment on an appeal against the appointment of a junior officer as the secretary of the assembly. “It amounts to misuse of official authority and is open to cognisance/judicial scrutiny by the quarters concerned,” it added. Accepting an appeal of senior additional secretary Kifayatullah Khan Afridi on Dec 10, the tribunal consisting of members Mohammad Hamid Mughal, Mohammad Amin Khan Kundi and Ahmad Hassan had declared illegal the Aug 11, 2017, decision of the Departmental Promotion Committee and the Aug 15, 2017, notification by the then assembly speaker and current National Assembly speaker, Asad Qaiser, of the promotion of an officer junior to him, Nasrullah Khan, as the secretary.