Protest: Account officers’ strike enters 16th day

After February 10, in the second phase of their protest, officers will stop work completely.

ABBOTABAD:

The district accounts officers’ strike over the appointment of accountants entered 16th day.  “The Accountant General Pakistan Revenue (AGPR) has deprived the employees of provincial government of their right of promotion,” Accounts Officers Association President Haroon Khan, said.

The accountants on the call of Treasury and Accounts Officers Association (TAOA) Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) chapter have been observing token strike across Hazara division since January 1 by suspending work partially against what they called illegal postings by AGPR in the province.

There were over 33 account officers in Federally Administered Tribal Areas and K-P out of which the AG has posted 16 AOs directly from Islamabad. He said that after 18th Amendment, the accounts and treasury department has become a provincial subject and the provincial government has been making payments salaries and other perks and privileges of all the staff even those appointed and posted by the federal AGPR.

He said that owing to transfer of 16 account officers by the federal government to the province the promotions of those hired by the provincial government have been affected badly. He said that unless the repatriation of all the 16 account officers was made they would continue their strike. After February 10, in the second phase of their protest, they will stop work completely.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 17^th, 2013.