- Shahid Hussain says they will follow what is written in book; will not exceed their mandate
LAHORE: Public Procurement Regulatory Authority Managing Director Shahid Hussain has said that all civil servants will serve their posts legally and will not allow any political interference.
“We won’t be pressurised. The prime minister had categorically said that there will be no political interference in bureaucracy,” he said in his response to comments made by Federal Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry that the bureaucracy should implement the government policies.
“We will follow what is written in the book and not exceed our mandate,” said Hussain, a grade 21 officer who is also president of the Provincial Management Services Association. He said that some people compromise on their principles to fulfil petty interests.
Punjab Minister for Information Fayazul Hassan Chohan also said that the statements made by both Prime Minister Imran Khan and Fawad Chaudhry were correct. He said that the law and the constitution state that the bureaucracy has to work with the government. “However, if the government bypasses the law, then they shouldn’t agree.”
He also said that the opposition was just trying to create a controversy. In Punjab, “98% civil servants are working in coordination with me and Chief Minister Usman Buzdar,” the minister said. About the controversial posting of PakPattan DPO, Chohan said that the case can’t be compared to that of the Model Town, in which the police were ordered to open fire on the protesters.
“We criticised the interference of previous governments in bureaucrats because they were killing people, laundering money and using people such as former Lahore Development Authority official Fawad Hassan Fawad to grant contracts illegally,” he said. On Wednesday, Fawad Chaudhry said that the bureaucrats who want to implement their own policies were free to leave their posts.