PARC workers protest sacking ‘on political grounds’

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As many as 267 sacked employees of Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) Monday staged a demonstration against what they called their ‘unjustified’ termination from service.They chanted slogans against the PARC administration outside the PARC building. However, PARC Chairman Dr Muhammad Afzal, while talking to Pakistan Today said that those sacked had been illegally appointed by his predecessor Dr Zafar Altaf during 2009-10.
Contrary to Dr Afzal’s claim, a sacked employee Muhammad Luqman said, “We were appointed legally but at the behest of some high-ups in the PPP government the incumbent chairman removed us to appointment their blue-eyed boys.” Muhammad Arshad, another employee, said that most of the sacked employees had been working as daily wagers for years and that former chairman had only regularised them. The protesting employees said that they have been served termination letters, in which administration failed to justify their firing.
“The price hike has already made our life miserable and now we are being fired on political grounds. There was no legal justification for firing us”, he added. Besides termination of 267 employees, PARC has also sent back 5 officer of BPS-17 and above, who have been working on deputation, to their parent departments. The sacked employees include three officers of BPS-20, four of BPS 19, One of BPS-18, 44 of BPS-17, 18 of BPS-16.

22 COMMENTS

  1. A sick mind and unethical approach is the root cause of disastours in agricultural reserach system of Pakistam. Sacking employees in PARC and Challengng the constitutional authority of an outgoing Chairman is a serios crime. If an incumbent makes decisins based on his personal wimps then why we waste time in crafting constitutional ordinance to establish an organization. Legislators should not support any unconstitutional act and action to put on ground zero the research establishments.

  2. No merit has been followed.Pick and choose has been done. MA political science people were appointed as Principle Scientific Officers (BPS-19).Matriculate was put in Finance in BPS-17.Non agriculture degree holders were mostly recruited crushing the rights of agricultural graduates who already have fewer openings these days and are much more qualified (4 years Bachelors followed by two years Masters degrees) compared to BA ,MA people recruited. Females were given priority.Now it is their right, what about those deserving and more suitable agricultural graduates whose applications were thrown away just to put the liked ones.Are not they in financial difficultues, don't they deserve PARC jobs? Try to be logical.

    • whatever you said mr zahid naseem but all were not the same. Most of them were well qualified and upto criteria. The almost work for more than two years so how can you take a job from these people

      • Haqeeqat main Merit ka Qatl-e-Aam kiya gya. PARC ko aik family organization bana diya gaya.

        Agar bharti k liye koi ishtihar bhi diya gya to sirf un ko hi appointment di gai jo already decided thy…………

        01 January 2010 ko aik mega advertisement newspapers main di gai, about 16000/- applications receive hoein, laikin usko process hi na kiya gaya… kiya bhi kaisy jaata, bahar k log agar merit par aa jaty to phir Dr. Z.A apny man pasand logon ko regular kaisy karty..

        Yeh sab un 16000/- logon ki bad-dua hai….

        Zahir hai jin logon ny faida uthaya woh to aisa kehny se rahy

  3. Due to about 25 highly controversial senior appointments (such as NGO person with non-agri back ground appointed as Consultant at 150,000 PM) MA Political Science and an absconder of Sindh Education Department recruited in BPS-19 and given all the power along with 7 vehicles, and un-limited Karachi-Islamabad-Karachi air-trips, a fake degree holder from Germany appointed directly in BPS-20, actually jeopardized the career of at least other 200 appointments. No doubt all 267 were illegally appointed and BoG had recommended to recover the dues paid to these as well. A well established research organization was derailed by the KING by appointing no less than 518 such illegal staff (out of around 2500) that makes it 20% staff.

  4. Asif Furrakh, a reported criminal at a Rawalpindi Police Station, Mr Ahar Javed a reported criminal from Multan (to whom Police arrested for 4 months in Multan Jail and yet he claimed his salary for these months, and Ms Hameeda Shah approving his tour program when he was in Jail) speaks of the gravity of the situation the PARC Management was rearing during last two and a half year. Else, how come a government who had appointed these also sacked these employees? Surely, their illegal appointments were proved at the highest level.

  5. Sacked executives of the Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) who were illegally appointed by the previous Chairman of the Council Dr Zafar Altaf are working hard and using pressure tactics to get their dismissal reversed using influence and high connections.

    New chairman of the PARC Dr Afzal has said that the new management of the PARC after thorough investigations sacked these 269 employees after getting permission from the prime minister by explaining to him the fraudulent practices done while hiring these individuals.

    The News has unearthed this mega recruitment scandal on October 1, 2010 informing its readers that like many other national institutions and corporations Dr Zafar Altaf appointed more than 300 sons and nephews of the elite of the country in complete violation of rules and regulations and mostly without any advertisement.

    The important point at the time of publication of the story last year was that the Establishment Division had confirmed to The News that Dr Zafar Altaf’s own appointment as Chairman PARC had expired on August 11, 2010 but Dr Zafar Altaf hired more than hundred people after publication of The News story and was accused of flouting rules. However, no court took notice of these appointments.

    Dr Zafar Altaf had introduced a philosophy that ‘agriculture’ was not a ‘science’ but an ‘art’ so he mostly appointed artists, journalists or NGO workers and forced senior most scientists of the country to work under new appointees.

    It is worth mentioning that the appointments were made in a situation when the PARC was already facing the problem of overstaffing, having 800 professionals in all relevant research and scientific disciplines, including 169 PhDs.

    Conveniently, a new ‘portfolio’ of honorary consultant was created on which people serving in other institutions and fields were hired in a way that they were given no ‘salary’ but were entitled to perks and privileges of Grade-18 to Grade-21 posts. These perks included staff cars, fuel and travelling and daily allowances.

    One such honorary consultant was Barrister Rafay Zeeshan Javaid Altaf, a practicing lawyer and nephew of the chairman himself. According to his appointment letter, issued by his own uncle, he was entitled to car and TA/DA of special pay scale-II officer. It is important that legal wing of the PARC already had four top legal minds.

    • mr.noorani you are just talking about the high officials who were appointed by Dr,ZA. what about the rest????????… the people who were appointed on BPS-14 and lower grades and having no high connections???? and meeting all the education criteria….be realistic….

  6. RAWALPINDI: The National Assembly Standing Committee on Food and Agriculture has unveiled close to 1,000 illegal appointments in the Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) and recommended termination of these employees from service.

    The startling disclosures were made at a meeting of the NA body held with its Chairman Iqbal Warraich in the chair. The meeting found that four persons each of the same families were posted on important positions in the agri research body. The meeting took strong exception to the illegal actions of PARC chairman. Members of the committee protested the appointment of kith and kin of the high up in the PARC by saying that neither they followed the instructions of the prime minister nor cared for the recommendations of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

    The committee was told that Qurratul Ain was appointed Director AVC while her spouse Ghulam Akbar was SPS 10. A sister-in-law of Ghulam Akbar, Nusrat Batool, has been appointed Director Cottage while his other sister-in-law Nusrat Habib has been posted as SPS 8.

    The brother-in-law of Chairman PARC, Yousuf Deer has been appointed in SPS 10. Similarly, daughter of Member Finance Shana Khaliq has been posted at SPS 7. The son of Zar Qureshi, Imran Ali, has also been posted at SPS 7.

    Similarly, sister-in-law of Director General Water Management Tahir Anwar, Zubaida Hassan has been posted as Director Hostel Warden in SPS 10. Prior to that she was telephone operator. She has also been working at the residence of Dr Zafar Altaf for the last five years.

    Members of the Committee disclosed that PARC DG in Gilgit Rash Khan was appointed illegally while the DG illegally posted his nephew and brother-in-law Shamshad and Faridullah respectively through illegal means. Brother of Assistant Director Abdul Ahad Sami, Muhammad Niaz Sami, was also appointed illegally. The appointment of yet another official, Samina M Hussain, who is sister of Assistant Director Sumera Hussain, was illegal.

    The National Assembly Standing Committee was told that illegal appointments made by Rash Khan has already been brought into the notice of the prime minister and agriculture minister by the chief minister, Gilgit-Baltistan. It was further told that chairman PARC has appointed scores of handpicked persons in different departments on important positions. In most of the cases such position holders draw a monthly salary of Rs100,000 each.

    The committee declared all the appointments illegal and recommended sacking of all such persons. It also declared the continuation of PARC chairman as illegal as his tenure expired on August 11, 2010. It asked the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to present the report to the review committee, appointed by the prime minister by November 9 for further action.

  7. well , if all appointments of dr ZA are illegal then
    what about all upgradations and permossions ?
    PARC mangment has acepted some of zafar altaf actions legal through whuich they got benefits..and some ilegal..
    rit now, SSD appointments mein 20 slected mein se 12 kou terminate kur dya gaya nd 8 ko safe , q k remaining 8 mein apny relative hain…PS to CHAIRMAN Qayum ke sister ASIYA BATOOL is safe..Member ssd dr.sharif ke daughter in law safe…Bushra rehman safe with 2.9cgpa jub keh require 3 cgpa tha…please ans me
    discrimination q hai …pick and choose formula q apply hav .. dr zaffar k rakhy hoy all employees ko terminate q ni kya.. apny relative safe kye hain… and dr. zaffar ne jitne bhe upgaradations ke hain woh q legal hain,,…mujhy iska answer dain plze…

  8. Appointments Matriculate as Account Officer, a non-agri graduate as Consultant on Dates, criminal from Multan who was jailed for 4 months during his job in Grade-18, A ex-USDA staff with case in RWO POlice Station as PD, An absconder of Sindh became a Grade-19 officer (MA- Political Science), a family of four Grade-19, paper cheater in G-20! A relative became a Consultant on his 60th Birth day after retirement from PARC!

  9. zafar altaf k sary actions wapis lelo…
    zafar altaf ke gultiu just yeh hai keh usne young blood ko appointr kya jo keh
    Parc managment se brdasht ni hva..PARC politics ne 269 ghar ujar dye .. in wich 213 employees were lower staf jin ke salaries 6-9 thousands the..govt k pas apni ayashi k lye paisa hai..but gharib ke salaries k lye khazany mein paisy ni …
    v.sad…

  10. in the start Dr. ZA appointed 1000 illegal employees then comes the reduction of 500, and at the time of termination they are left with only 269..???????? great mystery…
    the rest includes the relatives and dear ones of the present management……is it? can any one solve this mystery??????????

  11. from january till june what new establishment done in Parc? answer is not very difficult, just doing one thing how to stop dr. zafar altaf,worth while projects for this nation, Regardless of knowing his decisive efforts for development of agricultural sector, efforts were only confined to expressing negative standpoint towards him, who beyond doubt steadfast, candid and heartfelt to this country. I am afraid if this type of attitude to perturb those people who legitimate to this country, result in profound misplace of this nation. what type of justification these people gave is simply showing their capability, then 2nd thing they done how to sack the people of dr. zafar altaf era. these people wasted their potentiality only working of these two things (by the way i am not sure they have any potentiality).

  12. Haqeeqat main Merit ka Qatl-e-Aam kiya gya. PARC ko aik family organization bana diya gaya.

    Agar bharti k liye koi ishtihar bhi diya gya to sirf un ko hi appointment di gai jo already decided thy…………

    01 January 2010 ko aik mega advertisement newspapers main di gai, about 16000/- applications receive hoein, laikin usko process hi na kiya gaya… kiya bhi kaisy jaata, bahar k log agar merit par aa jaty to phir Dr. Z.A apny man pasand logon ko regular kaisy karty..

    Yeh sab un 16000/- logon ki bad-dua hai….

    Zahir hai jin logon ny faida uthaya woh to aisa kehny se rahy

  13. sajid sahib please show at least little bit sign of maturity in your way of talking, i never ever understand how people deny the real fact even when they are being a part of orgnization during dr. zafar tenure, the signs of development easly visible during the time of dr. zafar and sign of destruction during the time of presented chairman, why we are so humiliated being a nation just because of people like sajid sahib. these type of people always stand with wrong one, just because of their self interest. please God help us

    • Don't worry, Mr. Sharyar,,

      Soon Court will decide what is right and wrong….

      just wait….

  14. ya of course waiting for it disparagingly , i wish those people use the word right and wrong, they also know the differentiation in between right vs wrong.

    • I think that You don't know the reality and facts…. Just tell only one appointment which was made on merit….?????????

  15. The termination of 269 fair positions in PARC has been done as a result of third-rated conspirarcies of DG NARC, Dr. Iftikhar Ahmad who is a born Qadiani and actively working as anti-Islam lobby in Pakistan. Dr. Iftikhar has been guilty of harassing innocent junior employees in PARC and NARC in the near past and recently for converting towards Qadianiat. He is part of the dangerous anti-pakistan and anti-islam lobby not only locally but also at the international level. This is pity that no one could still recognize his role in the NARC that is purely related to Qadiani beliefs. He is more involved in preaching Qadiani beliefs than undertaking reserach and development in the organization. All the NARC and PARC employees are requested to un-cover his designs and save the organization from destruction.

  16. Thiis is the first time that i have seen these arguments. if Sajid is right then i will be willing to beyt all that i have against whatever he has. he has been telling lies on the page. The recruitment of top level was done by Dr. Iftiikhar the current acting chairman. yes dr. Afzal ran away after destroyng and giving cars to his dr. son who wrotye of a new car. The iorother was used by his wife. Dr. S=zafar only took notice of the way these seniors were ravishing the organization. Not one of them has the courage to face dr. Zafar altaf on TV for a debate. the otgher committees that were headed were by Dr. Azam for the economic griup and the lower functionaries by Shahida Janil the director of pannign. Just askl then whether Z=Dr. ZA git any one on the line for a job. Lies do not last and if sajid is amn of Charqcter he will face the learbned DR. za WHO HAS BEEN A THORN IN THEIR SIDE.
    mORE IF YOU WANT IT.

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