PESHAWAR, Jan 19: The Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) has recommended confirmation of five ad-hoc assistant directors of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), according to official sources. The FPSC in its recommendation letter to Secretary Interior Kamal Shah sent on Wednesday also recommended that three ad-hoc FIA assistant directors were fit for “low grade” services, thus declared them unfit for their current positions, the sources told Dawn on Thursday.

Eight assistant directors and over two dozen inspectors were appointed in the FIA on ad-hoc basis during the first tenure of Benazir Bhutto in 1989, reportedly in violation of FPSC rules and provincial quota system.

The long tussle between the FIA management and ad-hoc employees continued for several years and finally the government decided to end the impasse.

Sources said that one of the ad hoc employees of the federal health department had approached the Supreme Court in 2004 seeking regularization of his service, these sources said.

The Supreme Court in its judgment asked the federal government to conduct interviews of those officials who were working in different departments on ad hoc basis for quite a long time.

The FIA and FPSC jointly decided to regularise the services of ad hoc officials after interviews on Nov 30 last year.

The eight ad hoc assistant directors in the FIA were asked to appear before the three-member commission comprising Additional Director General FIA Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Niazi and two FPSC members, they added.

While, the ad hoc inspectors in the FIA also appeared after the interviews of these eight assistant directors, these sources maintained.

The FPSC declared the result of the ad hoc assistant directors on Wednesday, while the inspectors’ result was still awaited, the sources said.

Those whose services were confirmed included Assistant Director Passport Cell, Karachi, Safiullah Jokhio; Assistant Director Anti-Terrorism Unit, Karachi, Imtiaz Ali Channa; Assistant Director, Hyderabad zonal office, Mushtaq Ahmad; Assistant Director Immigration, Peshawar, Inamullah Khan Gandapur and Assistant Director Crime Cell, Hyderabad, Abdul Hameed Bhutto.

The official letter stated that these five officials were fit to retain their current positions and their services maybe considered as regular.

Those who could not qualify their examinations included Assistant Director in Sukkur Zubair Ahmad, Assistant Director in Lahore Akram Ali Shad and Suhail Arif Awan, an officer on special duty (OSD).

The FPSC in its letter to the interior secretary stated that these officials were fit for any lower grade service.