Let’s have a look at extension and upgradation of the registrar saga
By Manzoor Shaikh
The grant of the second term and the elevation to grade 22 for the registrar Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) Engr. Nasir Mahmood continues to be at the center of debate among engineers who appear divided on the question if the decisions are backed by the council act and bylaws. Seemingly, the talk, revolving around lawfulness, is essentially political, in its nature, and has worked to kick off the campaign for PEC Elections 2024.
The promotion and the grant of the extension to the registrarbecame a bone of contention between the ruling coalition led by Engr. Chairman Engr. Najeeb Haroon, claiming the extension and upgradation of the registrar were lawful and in accordance with the Restructuring Plan of the PEC prepared by the Human Resources (HR) Department. “It was approved by the 44th meeting of the Governing Body of the council on December 18, 2022, after getting the nod from the management committee—a body comprised of the chairman, senior vice chairman, and all four vice chairmen in the provinces.”
The antagonists led by Engr. Mukhtiar Shaikh put forth PEC Service Rules 2020 saying that the criteria has not been fulfilled for filling the post of the registrar. Also, they oppose the induction of grade 22 in PEC and in support of their argument refer to the decision of the 32nd meeting of the Governing Body which did not approve grade 22 for the registrar.
Dr. Nasir Mehmood, the registrar of the council took charge of the office on March 22, 2024, for the second term granted by the chairman after he was promoted to grade 22.
The extension and elevation of the registrar were opposed by three vice chairmen as per a letter shared among engineers across the country. They are of the view that the three-year tenure of the Registrar expired on March 21, 2024, as per PEC Service-2020. He is not eligible to work as Registrar and his continuation in the office will be illegal and in violation of PEC Service Rules 2020.
Quoting rules regarding ‘Selection/Tenure post’, they claim the criteria has not been fulfilled for filling the post of the registrar. Also, they oppose the induction of grade 22 in PEC and in support of their argument refer to the decision of the 32nd meeting of the governing body which did not approve grade 22 for the registrar.
However, Engr. Haroon did not mince words saying he used his powers under 3A of the PEC Act to give the second term to Dr. Nasir Mehmood. ‘I am satisfied with his performance and ability as the registrar. He is a highly qualified senior officer with post-doctoral education from Japan. He has vast experience interacting with national and international organizations besides his expertise in policymaking.’
Engr. Najeeb Haroon said the post of registrar was upgraded for PEC scale 21/22 after the huge restructuring effort aimed at bringing a balance in the hierarchy and building a pyramid in the departments, regional offices, and entire council. Also, this is not the first time that the grade 22 post has been created in PEC. The council had Mehboob ulMuzafar in grade 22 in the past.
Sharing details, he said the 3rd HR Committee designed the restructuring plan on the directives that we issued after taking the reins of PEC in 2021. The plan was presented before the 88th management committee which made a subcommittee and mandated it to make recommendations within ten days. The subcommittee met in Lahore on September 24, 2022, and referred the final document to the 90th management committee which approved the document.
In 2023, we recruited directors in Finance, IT, and HR through the selection board. It was aimed at consolidating the council. Earlier, there was no promotion board for 8 years. I gave the lead to the vice chairmen and then promoted 8 officers from 17 to 21 grades. Two 21-grade officers were already available in the council, he says.
National Engineering Alliance formed by Chairman Engr. Najeeb Haroon, Engr. Abdul Qadir Shah, Engr. Mukhtiar Shaikh,Syed Ashfaq Shah (CAP),and others are at the center of the heated debate and havecreatedan atmosphere to look at the alliance from numerous perspectives. Engr. Haroon has already declared his candidacy for the second term and simultaneously Engr. Qadir Shah has also shown his eagerness to contest for the office of the chairman.
Though the alliance between Engr. Haroon and Shah-Shaikh group is intact as yet but much before the present ruckus both sides had started exploring possibilities of new alignments in the wake of disagreements between the partners. Now when the focus is on the forthcoming elections, any playable issue was understandably to be picked up by the warring groups in the ruling alliance to begin with their campaign. Thus, the issue pertaining to the extension of the registrar which appeared at the ripe time has caught the fire, and every differing segment keeping its interest in sight in the alliance started playing with it.
Had the issue of the extension of the registrar appeared say year ago, the reaction might have not been as swift and steadfast as it is today as the allies were yet to be in power for a longer period and conceived early to damage the alliance. Since, the polls are just five months away now, every possible issue has the potential to be played for the elections.
This issue has identified board outlines of the groupings in the alliance that can be analyzed from different angles. For instance, if one attempts to see it in the context of the registrar’s extension issue, Dr. Niaz Akhtar, VC Chairman Punjab seems standing with Engr. Najeeb Haroon. Engr. Akhtar did not sign the letter that his counterparts in the three remaining provinces sent to the chairman of PEC over the grant of a second extension to the registrar.
Interestingly enough Vice Chairman Balochistan Engr. Nasir Majeed who stands with Engr. Mukhtiar Shaikh and Engr.EjazAnsari on the issue of extension has sought information from the council about the foreign visits, the amount spent on these visits, and the purpose and relevance of the visiting engineers. He believes a lot of international visits /foreign tours have been made by different delegations on behalf of the council. The information that is in the circulation of the record says his couple of allies have been part of foreign visiting teams. Keeping at bay as to how his friends will react, his province is housing an influential engineer Engr. Waseem Asghar, President of ACEP is said to be ready to contest for the office of the chairman. How this alignment will work out is also yet to be seen.