Senate panel calls for employing locals

Directs Ministry of Maritime Affairs to ensure Baloch quota is not ‘misused’

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Committee on Maritime Affairs has directed the Ministry of Maritime Affairs to ensure appointments based on Baloch quota in the Gwadar development project.

The directives came on Tuesday during a briefing about the appointments made in the ministry, the Karachi Port Trust, the Port Qasim and the Gwadar Port during the last five years.

Committee Chairman Senator Nuzhat Sadiq said the appointments based on the Baloch quota would help reduce the sense of deprivation among the people of Balochistan.

Senator Usman Kakar asked the ministry to verify the domicile of the people appointed in the mentioned organisations, especially from Balochistan, to avoid the misuse of the allocated quota. He said it had been observed in the past that some people misused the quota to acquire jobs.

The Secretary Maritime Affairs, Khawaja Ashraf, replied that domicile verification might delay the appointment process. He added the ministry would request the provincial government for necessary assistance.

Senator Muhammad Azam Khan Musakhel said that the submitted information was not enough to determine the origin of the employees. He asked the ministry to come up with district- and tehsil-wise details of the employees in the next meeting.

Senator Khuda Babar underscored the need for imparting education and skills to locals. He also called for timely development of the Gwadar Port.

The Senate committee constituted a six-member body to ascertain the real situation in Gwadar and asked the nominated convener Khuda Babar to report within 20 days.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 10^th, 2018.