Around a half dozen top bureaucrats and officers in the National Assembly are actively seeking extensions in their services’ tenure and have been contacting the authorities concerned for the purpose, Pakistan Today has learnt through reliable sources privy to parliament.
The sources said the top gun of the National Assembly in the list of ‘extension aspirants’ was National Assembly Secretary Karamat Hussain Niazi, who has already had at least half a dozen extensions in the National Assembly, reflecting his power and resourcefulness.
Niazi’s extension tenure would be ending in April and he is likely to be retired from his current position, however, there are little chances of him not getting another extension in his tenure.
Sources said Niazi was an ‘expert’ at getting service extensions.
National Assembly Media DG Anjum Mughal retired on March 16 and has attended his farewell party, however, it remains a mystery how he is continuing in office and why has his retirement notification not been issued.
The sources said Mughal was also trying to hunt an extension in his service period and was contacting authorities concerned indirectly.
Most of the senior staff of the National Assembly is linking the retirements of Niazi and Mughal as part of the same ‘plan’, and expect that if one is successful in obtaining an extension, the other would be automatically awarded with the same.
In case Niazi fails to get another extension, the two potential candidates to replace him include National Assembly Special Secretary Qamar Abbas and National Assembly Additional Secretary Qamar Sohail.
Abbas has been re-employed in the National Assembly and is likely to get retired in the coming June, if not granted an extension.
The other candidate and subordinate of Niazi, Sohail, has arrived from the judiciary and could likely be the new National Assembly secretary.
