ISLAMABAD: Almost the entire hierarchy of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), except its Chairman Qamar Zaman Chaudhry, has changed within 10 days.

With the retirement of two regional directors appointed during the rule of retired Gen Pervez Musharraf -- retired Col Subh-i-Sadiq and retired Maj Shahzad Bhatti, the chairman now has his own team.

However, a NAB spokesman said the twice reshuffling of senior officials within 10 days was a ‘routine’ matter. When asked why some officials had been replaced repeatedly, he said: “Actually the chairman was waiting for completion of professional courses of some senior officials of NAB to depute them on vacant positions.”

Zahir Shah has been made Director General of NAB’s regional headquarters of Rawalpindi/Islamabad after the retirement of Mr Bhatti.

Senior Joint Secretary of the Establishment Division Shakeel Malik has been made DG Human Resources, a post previously held by Mr Sadiq.

DG NAB, Lahore, Husnain Ahmed (BS-21) has assumed the post of DG Training and Research, NAB Headquarters, Islamabad, and Director Rawalpindi retired Maj Burhan Ali has been transferred as DG Lahore.

Retired Maj Tariq Mahmood Malik, Director Operations, NAB Headquarters, has been made DG Balochistan, replacing Syed Khalid Iqbal who now is serving as DG Operations at the headquarters.

Lahore Director Mirza Muhammad Irfan Baig has been transferred as Director in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Director KP Irfan Naeem Mangi as a director at the bureau’s headquarters.

NAB has recently established two regional headquarters – one in Multan with Mohammad Altaf Bawany as DG, who was previously working as Director General Training and Research; and the second in Sukkur with retired Squadron Leader Tariq Nadeem as DG.

The Multan and Sukkur offices were set up in December, increasing the number of NAB’s regional headquarters to seven.

More than 10 senior officials have been transferred to Multan and Sukkur from other regional offices.

Published in Dawn January 28th, 2015

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