PESHAWAR: In a bizarre development, two secretaries are running an organisation here, one posted by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and the other, dogged by the National Accountability Bureau, granting himself an extension through a notification.

This happened a day before the chief minister asked the labour department to submit a report to him.

A Feb 18 note by the provincial labour secretary said the chief minister was “pleased to verbally” inquire about the status of a case.

It contains loads of allegations against the officer who has been serving on extensions since December, 2007, and is being investigated by NAB in nine “mega” corruption cases, according to the summary. The note sent to the chief minister remains pending for decision.

The department has opposed granting any further extension to the officer.

According to an official, a decision to grant an extension to the controversial officer could prove disastrous.

The chief minister’s spokesman Sheraz Paracha was approached for comments but there was no word from the CM Secretariat.

As a result, there are two secretaries of the Workers Welfare Board — Faridulah, posted by the government, who sits in his office on the Shami Road, and the influential Tariq Awan, who remained posted on a re-employment basis for three years since December 2007 and manoeuvred to get himself another extension of three years and operates out of the office of the WWB education director on Kohat Road, Peshawar.

Mr Faridullah and Mr Awan were not available for comments.

This is how it all began. On the approval of former Qaumi Watan Party minister for labour, Bakht Baidar Khan, a board meeting was convened on Nov 13 last year to consider granting another three-year extension to Mr Awan. However, the labour secretary, who is ex-officio chairman of the board, postponed the meeting the same day. Undeterred, the board met nonetheless, granting extension to Mr Awan.

The chairman, through an official letter on Nov 18, declared the minutes of the board meeting null and void. The very next day, the establishment department moved to post Faridullah as the WWB Secretary.

Mr Awan went to a civil court and lost the case. He appealed in the Peshawar High Court and got a stay order. Later, he withdrew his appeal and filed a writ petition instead. The court stayed the operation of the letter of the chairman (posting order of Mr Faridullah).

However, during regular hearing on Jan 30, it vacated the stay order, withdrew the interim relief granted to Mr Awan and retained the status of Mr Faridullah as secretary.In the intervening period, the note to the chief minister pointed out that an official probe unearthed “mega corruption/embezzlement/kickbacks in cases of land purchases and procurement of laboratory equipment, furniture, books and uniform.”

It accused him of making more than 4,400 appointments of teaching and non-teaching staff in the Folks Grammar Schools for about 27,000 students, as against 1,900 staff for 39,000 students in Punjab, without bringing it to the notice of the governing body of the WWB in Islamabad.

It charged him with making recruitments without following proper selection criteria, making appointments of about 405 surplus employees in technical and polytechnic institutions in the province and making recruitment against over 1,000 non-sanctioned posts.

On Jan 20, the chief minister ordered the WWB board members to pinpoint corruption with respect to the tender process, procurements and illegal appointments.

In a surprising twist, Mr Awan withdrew his petition during the court hearing on Feb 18, but a day earlier, the 66-year-old had taken charge of the post of secretary for another three years -- till Nov 30, 2016 -- with an undertaking to the chief minister that he would withdraw his petition.

Citing grounds, the labour department said in its note sent to the chief minister on Fen 18 that any retention or extension to Mr Awan was not “desirable”.