ISLAMABAD: The new PTI-led government is expected to announce a massive administrative reshuffle at federal and provincial levels, especially in economic ministries, over the next couple of days, Dawn has learnt.

Soon after taking the oath as prime minister, Imran Khan appointed former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief secretary Mohammad Azam Khan as his secretary.

He was made additional secretary in charge at the Ministry of States and Frontier Regions by the caretaker government.

Sources in the establishment division told Dawn that Mr Azam was picked up for the most import post by the prime minister himself. He was interested in retaining the post of KP chief secretary in order to oversee the ongoing reforms projects in the province, along with the merger plan of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Mr Azam was the main architect behind reviving the tourism sector in KP, which brought him closer to PTI chairman Imran Khan.

Trusted former top bureaucrats who are associated with the PTI have been given the task of identifying serving bureaucrats with experience and integrity for posting them on important positions — chief secretaries, inspectors general poli­ce, heads of corporations, etc.

The designated team, including former federal secretary Arbab Shehzad who is also designated as adviser to the prime minister on establishment, has already completed the profiling of bureaucrats for different positions. The profiling includes integrity, competence and lack of political affiliations.

According to the sources, the team also listed all those bureaucrats who were posted on important positions by the PML-N government with the sole criteria of political associations. These bureaucrats mostly possessed domicile of Lahore.

The currently posted bureaucrats on important positions will be evaluated on the basis of their competence and expertise irrespective of their political associations, the sources said.

At the federal level, new bureaucrats will be posed at the ministries of finance, commerce, industry, energy, water, statistics, textile and interior and the Federal Board of Revenue.

Published in Dawn, August 19th, 2018