Top anti-terrorism body has lopsided structure

The News 21 Sept 2013 ISLAMABAD: As the country is reeling under a wave of terror with over 50,000 fatalities in last 10 years, the seriousness of the successive governments in tackling the issue is evident from the state of the National Counter Terrorism Authority (Nacta) which has only 68 employees against 203 vacancies. On top of this lopsided situation majority of the existing employees are PPP loyalists with dubious career records, The News has learnt.The Authority remained a favourite dumping site for the dubious officers and employees during PPP regime with massive irregularities in their appointment. However, the PML-N government which has declared that its counter-terrorism policy will be executed through Nacta, has so far failed to take corrective measures during its first three and half months. According to sources, the Authority has no record of 55 existing employees who were hired by the former PPP government when the authority was under the Ministry of Interior before the promulgation of Nacta Act 2013. Most of these employees and officers have dubious background as they were hired by top officials of PPP in some other department against the rules before being quietly posted in Nacta on deputation. Sources said the relevant authorities have failed to provide the data of these employees despite repeated request from current Nacta management during last four months. The situation in the officer cadre is even grimmer as 90 per cent posts in the officer cadre are lying vacant while the majority of existing officers have been appointed in violation of rules. One such officer is Haris Mirza who was hired on one-year contract in Nacta in May 2012 but immediately got posted in FIA for three years on deputation. However after the Supreme Court of Pakistan ordered the government to send the deputationists back to their department, Mirza was hired again by Nacta on regular post in March 2013 at a time when Election Commission had banned all appointments ahead of polls. Similarly another officer Rabia Yasmin was posted in Nacta on grade 19 on deputation from Associated Press of Pakistan (APP).Interestingly, she was hired in APP in 2012 directly in scale 1 on the orders of the then Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, in violation of rules and served in the agency only for a month. Rules were violated twice while sending her on deputation in Nacta as APP’s grade 1 is equivalent to BS-18 but she was posted in BS-19. When contacted for his version about glaring violation of rules, the Acting National Coordinator (NC) of Nacta Dr Hyder Ali said he is unable to take action against powerful employees as they have political links. “I have only served in Nacta for five months but I have come to know that this institution is the most neglected organ of the government,” he said adding that he had tried to fire some influential officers who were appointed illegally in Nacta but the reaction was so strong that he is afraid of taking any further steps. Ali said after assuming charge of Nacta chief he had fired close relatives of a former prime ministers and two ministers who were working on the posts of Directors in the authority. He said one Zamir Farooqi brother-in-law of a senior PPP leader Mir Khan Mandokhel, brother of a Balouchistan Senior Minister and Tariq Khan, alleged frontman of a Karachi-based minister were among those who were fired. He said a senior official of Nacta Khushdil Khan was also hired by the former Interior Minister Rehman Malik.He also confirmed that Authority does not have any data of over 50 employees who had been absorbed from various departments.“I don’t know who these people are and despite repeated requests the government has not given any information about them which makes their appointment extremely dubious,” Ali said.