ISLAMABAD: Tariq Malik on Tuesday resigned from his position as chairman of the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra), a year before the completion of his three-year term.

The resignation was submitted by him during a meeting with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The resignation came months after a controversy over the leak of data regarding the family of a army chief, entailing action against some employees by Mr Malik.

“I find it increasingly difficult to work in a charged and polarised political environment. It is difficult for any professional to maintain his integrity and independence in an environment that constantly pigeon-holes people in an ‘us versus them’ logic and where political loyalty is privileged over competence,” read the three-page resignation, whose copy is available with Dawn.

Mr Malik in his resignation pleaded to the prime minister not to appoint a serving or retired bureaucrat as his replacement and instead pick a professional and technical person for the job. “The organisation deserves a thorough professional with a background in technology and management,” he said, adding that Nadra cannot afford further political experimentation.

He said during his short stints at Nadra, he tried to serve the country to the best of his abilities and beyond narrow party or institutional interests. “I was selected to lead the organisation after a highly competitive process involving over 100 applicants and multiple rounds of interviews. At the time I was serving as the chief technical adviser of the UNDP headquarters in New York, US, advising member states on digital governance.

“In that capacity, I had the privilege of observing and shaping from close quarters the digitalisation of many rich and poor countries, anchored in digital ID. I also had the honour of shaping the global standards for digital ID at the World Bank. In the course of fulfilling various global assignments, Pakistan remained my first passion and foremost commitment. In this context, I was pleased to have played a humble part in contributing to the development of an organization that forms the backbone of Pakistan’s development,” he said.

Mr Malik was appointed Nadra chairman for a second time in June 2021, by the then PTI government. He had reportedly been facing immense pressure from the interior minister to resign after reports emerged that some officials of the authority had been found involved in leaking personal data of army chief and his family.

“PM during the meeting appreciated the services of [Mr] Malik,” said a statement issued by Nadra. The official sources said that the premier also requested him to help the government, by utilising his expertise, in increasing tax net.

Earlier in the day, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah addressing a press conference said that the resignation of Nadra chairman had nothing to do with the data leak issue. “He was facing no pressure to resign,” he asserted, adding that action had already been taken against all those involved in the data leak.

Published in Dawn, June 14th, 2023