Sindh’s interim Chief Minister Justice (r) Zahid Kurban Alavi has refused to release the salaries of more than 150,000 contractual employees allegedly appointed on political basis by the former Pakistan People’s Party government, Pakistan Today has learnt.
According to the sources, Alavi, who is known to be in the good books of the PPP, decided to keep the matter pending for the next elected government.
The sources said that the Local Government Department had moved a summary to the CM seeking the regularization of the employees and release of their salaries but Alavi rejected the proposal, saying that these employees should be regularised by the next elected government as he was not mandated to authorize such appointments.
Sources said that the district authorities were in a quandary as they did not have funds to release salaries of the excess employees. “Several meetings have taken place to resolve the matter but there has been no breakthrough,” the sources said.
Local Government Board Secretary Shaukat Jokhio told Pakistan Today that former LG Minister Agha Siraj Durrani had appointed thousands of people on political grounds, leaving the Local Government Department burdened with excess hiring. In TMA Khairpur, Nathan Shah, 650 people had been appointed against the required strength of around 94 people, he said.
