Zafar and his “right hand man”, deputy secretary Muhammad Shafqaat would interfere in every major decision at the board, the sources said. PHOTO: FILE
The chairperson of the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE), Shaheen Khan, assured the board’s employees on Monday that her husband will not meddle in the board’s affairs in the future.
The assurance came after days of protests from the employees about the role of Khan’s husband, Colonel (retired) Muhammad Zafar, in the daily affairs of the federal board.
Sources close to the development told The Express Tribune Zafar was a constant presence at the FBISE’s building compound in sector H-8, Islamabad. Zafar and his “right hand man”, deputy secretary Muhammad Shafqaat, who was on deputation at the board from the Auditor General’s office, would interfere in every major decision at the board, the sources said.
Things came to a head when Zafar tried to order one of the board’s department directors, Zulfiqar Rizvi, to amend a file during a meeting on Thursday. When Rizvi resisted the diktat, Zafar behaved rudely to him, according to the sources.
The altercation led to all the department heads of the federal board uniting in protest against Zafar’s interference. The development caught the notice of higher-ups in the education ministry, the sources said.
Consequently, Khan not only pacified the employees on Monday, she also vacated a 16-room guest house on the federal board’s premises. The guest house had been illegally occupied by Khan and Zafar since Khan’s deputation at the board around four years ago. Khan announced the guest house will now be converted into an Information Technology centre.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 1st, 2013.
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