Zubair to be more vocal, agile governor

KARACHI: The incumbent chairman of the Privatisation Commission of Pakistan, Muhammad Zubair, also known as Zubair Umar, will be sworn in as 32nd governor of Sindh on Thursday (today).  Zubair was appointed to the top post following the death of Justice (retd) Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui on January 11 after a three-month stint.

Zubair belongs to an Urdu-speaking family that had migrated to Pakistan from the Patiala area of Indian Punjab. He was born in Abbottabad but was raised in Karachi. His father, Major General Ghulam Umar, was one of the main characters investigated by the Hamoodur Rahman Commission for his alleged role in the East Pakistan debacle in 1971.



After his education from the Institute of Business Administration in Karachi, Zubair joined the same institute as a faculty member. He has also worked for the International Business Machines in senior positions.

Zubair, who belongs to the PML-N, is the elder brother of PTI lawmaker Asad Umar. Zubair and Asad joined the rival parties in 2012 – a year before the May 2013 general elections.

The PPP and the MQM are the major stakeholders in Sindh’s politics, but both parties have not been consulted before Zubair’s nomination.

“It is a federal government prerogative to appoint the governor, but they should have consulted the Sindh chief minister who has to have a working relationship with the governor,” said PPP leader Nisar Khuhro. “The same thing had happened in the case of Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui who could not attend even a single meeting in the Governor House because of his deteriorating health issue.”

According to independent analysts, the PML-N, which has always ignored its organisation in Sindh, can now use the new governor for this purpose as Zubair is an energetic person. They believe while the role governor has largely become ceremonial, especially after the 18th constitutional amendment, Zubair will be a more active governor than his predecessors, Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui and Dr Ishratul Ebad.

“He is an expert in financial management and has worked with various national and international organisations. His appointment will not only make difference for his party, the PML-N, but will also yield good results for the province,” said PML-N leader Kheehal Das Kohistani.



Sindhi writer Zulfikar Halipoto agreed that after Zubair’s induction, the PML-N might turn the Governor House into the epicentre of its political activities. “It looks as if the PML-N’s main target is the business community that is why it has appointed a business-oriented man,” he said.

Requesting not be named, one of Zubair’s friends said the governor-designate himself has been a victim of extortion in Karachi and had received ‘extortion chit’ from extortionists a few years ago. “Therefore, now his focus will be development, economy and law and order situation,” he added.

However, addressing a seminar in Karachi on Wednesday, Zabair said, “My focus will be to turn Karachi again into a city of lights and revive its socio-economic development.”  He referred to three years’ statistics and credited his party for establishing peace in the city. “I will fulfill our leadership’s dream to speed up economic activity in the city,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 2^nd, 2017.