The posting of Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) Nadeem Hassan Asif as the principal secretary to the chief minister is a part of the political strategy of the PML-N to make the CM’s Secretariat more accessible, Pakistan Today has learnt.
Sources privy to the development says Nadeem is a senior officer with a rich experience in the field, as he has served as the Lahore deputy commissioner and commissioner besides being the Home Department secretary. All these postings have given ample experience to Nadeem in dealing with the public and their representatives.
On the other hand, Dr Tauqeer, whom Nadeem is replacing, has little experience in the field and caused a lot of resentment among public representatives. He has, however, been posted as the secretary coordination to the CM and sources believe that it is the prerogative of the CM to divide work among different officers. “The office work and files will be now mostly handled by Tauqeer while Nadeem will deal with public representatives,” they added.
While the vacant post of the ACS has set all contenders in motion once again, as happened when Nadeem was given one of the lucrative offices in Punjab bureaucracy. Sources in the government revealed that Home Secretary Shahid Khan, who is also the senior most officer for the post, is the strongest contender for the post of ACS. While any decision in this regard will be taken after the CM’s return, who is on a visit abroad.
