Amid sheer frustration, the government is now attacking Technocrats for their failure to comply with government wishes. 6 top men for the ICTRDF have been fired including HEC Executive Director Dr. Sohail Naqvi. Pressure is also mounting on Dr. Javed Leghari to resign amidst the bogus degree saga.

Ammar Faheem, July 08 – 2010

These are really troubling reports coming in. Apparently, Mr. Latif Khosa (Advisor to the Prime Minister for IT & Telecom) has fired six top men from the ICTRDF – National Information Communication Technologies Research and Development Fund – after a dispute with them. The dispute is over control of the more than Rs. 20 Billion that are available with this fund and the USF (Universal Service Fund) for the development of IT and Telecom infrastructure in Pakistan.

Those fired include: Mr. Sikandar Taqi, Mr. Wahaj Siraj, Mr. Zafar Usmani, Dr. Amir Mateen, Dr. Sohail Naqvi, and Dr. Mansoor Sarwar

The funds were made available in the Musharraf era during which the IT and Telecom industry witnessed exponential growth.

This dispute was reported earlier on the 2nd of June in a report by Ansar Abbasi of ‘The News’, but the report was ferociously denied by Latif Khosa.

Khosa, Abidi insult top IT executives

ISLAMABAD: Adviser to the PM on Information Technology Sardar Latif Khosa faces a mutiny-like situation in his ministry and from the Board of Directors of the two extremely wealthy telecom-specific private sector companies, which the minister heads, but wants to run them in his own style.

There are apprehensions about the fate of a huge fund of more than Rs 20 billion available with these companies. However, what is really a serious matter for Khosa is the opposition that he is facing from his own secretary as well as member telecom of the IT Ministry over the question of key appointments in these companies, which were created for research and development and for spreading modern telecom services in under-served areas of Pakistan. Already Khosa had a confrontation with his secretary in a recent Senate Committee meeting where yet another PPP Senator Syed Faisal Raza Abidi joined Khosa and shouted at the top officials of the ministry and these companies. The adviser is alleged to have violated the SECP rules as he ignored the Board of Directors of these companies to impose his own will to get his choice men appointed as Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of these companies — the Universal Service Fund (USF) and National Information Communication Technologies Research and Development Fund ICTRDF.

….

http://thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=29239

Reports also suggest Mr. Latif Khosa is trying to install his brother-in-law to head the fund as ‘Chairman’, but his degree was found to be FAKE by the HEC.

 

Bogus MNA/MPA Degrees – Pressure on Higher Education Commission (HEC):

Amid growing speculations of a mid-term election possibility due to Bogus and Fake Higher education degrees of Parliamentarians and after the degree of Mr. Manzoor (Latif Khosa’s brother-in-law) was proven to be fake, the government has following advice of Mr. Khosa has fired HEC Executive Director, Dr. Sohail Naqvi from his position who is also on the ICTRDF board.

Dr. Sohail Naqvi is an accomplished engineer and academic. He holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University and has been at the fore of the comprehensive HEC policies that have helped revamp and improve University Education in Pakistan.

Pressure is also mounting on Dr. Javed Leghari, Chairman HEC, to resign for failing to comply with government wishes as more and more degrees of Parliamentirians are proved fake and bogus. The following report suggests the HEC chairman has refused to resign.

ISLAMABAD: In a desperate attempt to get rid of the bogus degree syndrome, the government has stepped up its efforts to get the resignation of Higher Education Commission (HEC) Chairman Dr Javed Leghari who refused to quit.

The CM Sindh called HEC chairman twice last week to seek his assurance for freezing the process of the MPs degrees verification but he expressed his helplessness. He was called again at the same midnight in the presence of provincial home minister and in the light of the instructions from the Presidency. He was asked to step down but he politely declined. Dr Javed Leghari, who was member of the Senate and heading the Szabist, had to resign on the pressure of the new government. The control of the Szabist was handed over to the sister of the president. Dr Leghari is an eminent educationist who has given his whole life for the cause of education. The HEC constituted a committee to verify the 934 degrees received from the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and it would finalise the process of scrutiny of the degrees till July 16. Meanwhile, ECP has failed to produce original degrees of 161 members even after more than two weeks whose educational documents were either photostat or they were not legible.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=29922

I am wondering where this is all heading to as the suggested ‘clash’ between the government and judiciary also takes center stage in the days to come.

Pakistan is running practically without a government as institutions challenge each other.

God Bless Pakistan.