ISLAMABAD, Jan 2: A plan to bifurcate foreign secretary's post has raised question about successor to the present Secretary Riaz Khokhar who is supposed to relinquish charge by Jan 31.

The proposal, reportedly supported by Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri, advocates bifurcating the post of the foreign secretary into two - foreign secretary, policy and foreign secretary, administration.

The plan has been taken up seriously at senior levels. In fact, the foreign minister is said to have even conveyed to Pakistan's ambassador to Turkey, Sher Afghan, that he would be appointed foreign secretary, administration.

Similarly, Pakistan's ambassador to China, Riaz Mohammad Khan, tipped as the next foreign secretary has also been informed about the decision to split the post into two. It is learnt that Mr Khan has still not confirmed his availability under changed terms.

Last week Mr Khan, whose wife has been with the US Foreign Service Training Institute, raised the issue with President Gen Pervez Musharraf, sources said. Apparently, Mr Khan maintained that the institution could not be run efficiently without unity of command.

He emphasized that without the administrative control he would be virtually devoid of any authority to manage the ministry. The president heard out Mr Khan patiently. However, no decision has yet been made to alter the plan to bifurcate the post.

It is believed that if Mr Khan accepts the position, Salman Bashir, additional secretary, Asia Pacific, at the foreign ministry, would replace him as ambassador in Beijing.

A precedent of bifurcation of the foreign secretary's post does exist. In the mid-seventies the ministry had two foreign secretaries when Gen Raza was secretary administration and Agha Shahi secretary policy.

Former career diplomats who served in the ministry at that time point to long delays the division of command caused in postings and other administrative matters. They see it as a flawed concept that would lead to unnecessary friction and politicization within the institution that is the country's external interface.

Meanwhile, observers warn that any attempt to bifurcate the post of foreign secretary could prove to be disastrous for one of the country's key ministries. From the institutional standpoint, they say, maintaining cohesion is fundamental, and argue that unity of command for this post is vital as it is for any other ministry.

In all other ministries the secretary controls the administration as well as the policy formulation and implementation mechanism process. No ministry has a bifurcated post.