ISLAMABAD: The government has constituted a committee to fill in the post of Pakistan’s ambassador and permanent representative to World Trade Organisation (WTO).

The committee headed by Commerce Minister Khurram Dastagir Khan will shortlist three names for the top slot. Other members of the committee are secretaries commerce, establishment, and foreign affairs.

A well-placed source told Dawn that the first meeting of the committee would be held on Tuesday to review the credentials of the identified eight candidates.

Like most public departments the commerce ministry has no defined criterion for the selection. Earlier, the two ambassadors were appointed by the prime ministers on summaries sent by the commerce ministry.

“The selection is not likely to be made on merit but to contain criticism the prospective candidates will be interviewed by the committee,” commented an inside source.

The names of shortlisted candidates would be sent to the prime minister for approval, the source added.

As per the identified list, six officials including former personal secretary to Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, Dr Tauqeer Shah, and two former bureaucrats now in the private sector are on top of the list.

The source said Dr Tauqeer Shah, who was the personal secretary of the Punjab chief minister in his earlier two terms before his removal in his current term on the same post along with Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah in the wake of Model Town incident, was likely to be selected for the prestigious slot because of his close association with the Sharif brothers.

Ironically, the commerce ministry has dropped the name of Dr Shaista Sohail, a PhD in international trade, who served as trade official at Geneva WTO mission.

The post fell vacant following retirement of Ambassador to WTO Shahid Bashir in August 2014.

Most of the officers, who are being considered for the slot were from the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), previously called District Management Group (DMG).

They include Zaffar Qadir DG National Centre for Rural Development; Azmat Ali Ranjha, Additional Secretary In charge ministry of IT; Dr Tauqeer Shah, Fazal Abbas Maken, Additional Secretary Commerce; Tippu Mohabat Khan, Deputy Permanent Representative to WTO and Qasim Niaz, Secretary Ministry of States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON).

The two persons from the private sector are former bureaucrats Rashid Kokub and S.I.M Nayer.

Azmat Ali Ranjha is also believed to have contacts in the PML-N who also served as Consul General Hong Kong, and trade minister at Washington.

Published in Dawn, October 21st , 2014