KARACHI, July 17: An inquiry commission report concerning allegations of corruption against the chairman of the Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC), Mohammad Hasan Bhutto, was received two months ago by the governor of Sindh, Dr Ishratul Ibad, Dawn has learnt. The findings, however, are yet to be made public.
Meanwhile, various government departments — whose performance is suffering because of the lack of staff — remain uncertain of whether to send appointment requisitions to the SPSC.
The issue first surfaced in December 2006, when at a hurriedly-called press conference, the Sindh Chief Minister, Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim, announced that all SPSC selections for the posts of deputy district attorney stood cancelled and that he had proof of nepotism and financial / administrative corruption against Mr Bhutto.
A former federal secretary of the Election Commission, Mr Bhutto was appointed the chairman of the SPSC in 2003. It is unclear how many appointments have been made by him during this period.
Access denied
Dr Rahim alleged that the SPSC chairman had colluded with the controller of examinations, Omar Zaur, to change examination and interview records, thereby interfering with the process of merit-based appointments.
The chief minister added that upon being asked for the record of medical officers, Mr Bhutto had restrained him from examining them. Therefore, said Dr Rahim, he had recommended that under the public service commission act and Article 15 of the constitution, the governor of Sindh appoint a judge of the Sindh High Court (SHC) to conduct a thorough inquiry.
Subsequently, the Sindh Governor, Dr Ibad, held a meeting with then chief secretary Fazlur Rahman, Law Secretary Ghulam Nabi Shah and Advocate-General Anwar Mansoor Khan, and issued directives about inquiring into the chief minister’s allegations as well as Mr Bhutto’s expressed reservations about the manner in which the commission’s image had been tarnished.
Justice Rehmat Hussain Jafry of the SHC was approached initially but declined on the grounds that he was related to Mr Bhutto. Subsequently, Justice Faisal Arab was appointed by the chief justice of the SHC and the report was submitted to Sindh Governor, Dr Ibad, two months ago.
However, an official of the Governor House said that the report was with the provincial chief minister.
Contractual jobs
Meanwhile, sources say that Mr Zaur, who was suspended, recently appeared in a hearing before Chief Minister Dr Rahim but the outcome remains unknown.
Following the allegations of irregularities, different departments withdrew their requisitions, thus rendering the SPSC non-functional. However, Dawn has learnt that these departments then filled vacancies on a contractual basis in violation of World Bank recommendations that appointments be made through a transparent, merit-based process.
Dawn’s sources recall that after the December 2006 press conference, the Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly, Nisar Khuhro, pointed out that Sindh Chief Minister Dr Rahim belongs to the ruling Pakistan Muslim League while Governor Dr Ibad was loyal to the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM). The opposition leader also commented that in 2004, the provincial legislature had made an abortive attempt to retrieve the power to appoint the SPSC chairman from the governor.
“The Sindh Public Service Commission (Amendment) Bill 2004 was passed by the Sindh Assembly and sent to the governor for assent, who then returned it to the provincial legislature for reconsideration” said the opposition leader.
However, the adoption of the bill by the provincial legislature was delayed.
According to Sindh Law Minister Iftikhar Chaudhry, who belongs to the Pakistan Muslim League (Functional), this was because the amendment bill did not take all the powers regarding the SPSC from the governor.
Under Article 116 of the 1973 constitution, the governor cannot refuse assent if the provincial legislature sends back a bill that remains unaltered despite reconsideration.
‘Government’ or ‘governor’
The Sindh Public Service Commission Act 1989 stipulated that the SPSC chairman and other members would be appointed by the “government.” However, the Sindh Public Service Commission (Amendment) Ordinance 2001 replaced the word “government” with “governor.”
According to former Supreme Court judge Nasir Aslam Zahid, this substitution is immaterial because in a parliamentary democracy such as that in Pakistan, the governor should act in accordance with the advice of the provincial cabinet or the chief minister. However, he told Dawn, “it is certainly cause for concern if this long-established principle is not being followed.”