PESHAWAR, April 29: The opposition parties have criticized the adjustment of junior officials as frontmen of the MMA ministers and removal of the senior officials from the provincial hierarchy.

Speaking on adjournment motion Abdul Akbar Khan of the PPP told the House that the government had made many senior officials as officers on special duty and adjusted most junior officers on the higher posts.

He said: “The junior officers who are appointed as frontmen by rulers, later on create troubles for their benefactors.”

Awami National Party leader Bashir Ahmed Bilour criticizing the practice termed it tantamount to kill the merit. He asked the government to cleanse the old mess instead of adding to it.

Defending his government, Minister for Health Inyatullah Khan said: “We have selected some of the officers for their administrative competency and working relations with the ministers concerned.”

The minister argued that a junior official could easily work at a senior’s post, but a senior official could not be ordered to sit in the junior’s seat. Any senior officer would prefer to be made an OSD, he added.

Abdul Akbar Khan, refuting the logic offered by the minister, said: “The senior officials are responsible to implement the laws and policies made by the MPAs. These senior officials are government. They are permanent, while you and I are here for a specified period,” he added.

The minister said that they were going by an old tradition laid down by the previous governments, and did it in the interest of the people.

The mover, who spoke at length on the sensitive issue, didn’t press his motion.

A former chief minister and MPA, Sardar Inyatullah Gandapur, tabled his adjournment motion against the humiliating attitude of the Pakistan Customs staff at the Kund post near Attock bridge.

He told the House his elder son, Ikramullah Khan, was driving towards Islamabad a few days ago, when he (son) reached near the Kund checkpoint, over 40 armed Customs officials encircled his vehicle and took him to their office.

The House requested the chair to convert the adjournment motion into resolution against the Customs officials and send it to the federal government for necessary action.

The House also asked the chair to summon the concerned Customs officials and ascertain the facts about the incident.

Rifat Akbar Swati of the PPP-S moved adjournment motion about the non-distribution of edible oil, donated by the World Food Programme, amongst school children. She said the oil should be distributed before its expire date.

Minister for Education Fazale Ali said the most of the schools had distributed the oil, but some of the schools were closed and could not distribute it. “We will distribute it before June,” said he assured.