KARACHI, Feb 17: Minister of Commerce Humayun Akhtar Khan has said that there is no move to disband Commerce and Trade Group (C&T) and officers and employees of the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) have been given option to either join Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) or remain in their present group.

Talking to a group of senior reporters at a breakfast meeting on Friday, he regretted that a wrong impression had been created that the C&T group was being disbanded and a large number of EPB employees would be laid off after the creation of TDAP.

The minister said that all employees of the EPB below grade 16 will be retained and officers have been given the option to either join the TDAP or remain in their present C&T group. Those officers, who opt for TDAP, will have to resign from their civil service posts, he added

Mr Khan said that he will also meet the EPB employees to clear their perception. He said there are many other organizations, such as TCP, NIC, and SLIC where the EPB officers belonging to T&C group could be accommodated, but in principle, he said, it has been decided that no worker will be fired.

Giving details about the TDAP the minister said that the creation of such an autonomous body had been necessitated because the EPB, which was created through executive order in early 60s, had lost its relevance.

Mr Khan said that in the EPB setup the chief accounting officer (CAO) is the Secretary ministry of commerce, whereas in the TDAP the managing director, who will have the status of the minister of state, will work as chief executive officer (CEO) and would also have the powers of the CAO. He will be appointed by the federal government.

Similarly, he said, in the EPB the vice chairman (VC) works as chief executive officer but under the Authority the VC will work as chief operating officer.

The TDAP will be an autonomous body run by a 25- member board and minister of commerce will be chairman of the board. The secretaries of all other federal ministries and chief secretaries of provinces will be on the board.

However, Humayun Akhtar said that there will be larger representation from the private sector to keep the authority vibrant and abreast with the ground realities and problems confronting the export trade.