ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Monday conducted an inquiry of a complaint against former Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif over his alleged nepotism in the case of the illegal appointment of Higher Education Commission (HEC) Chairperson Dr Mukhtar Ahmed. NAB Chairman Justice Javed Iqbal chaired a meeting in which it was decided to conduct a complaint verification against the former prime minister. Dr Mukhtar Ahmed was appointed as HEC chairperson in 2014. The HEC is a higher education regulatory body with more than a Rs 90 billion budget and has mandate to monitor affairs of 180 public sector universities across the county. As per information obtained by Daily Times, it was alleged in the NAB that the appointment of Dr Ahmed was made in violation of existing laws and principles of merit and transparency. It added that at the time of appointment, a summary sent to the than PM of Pakistan who, as per HEC act, was controlling authority of the commission. The information suggested that the complainant informed NAB that the former PM had ignored the eligibility criteria laid down in the HEC Act 2002. The advertisement published in the newspaper for the job went by a discriminatory and self-formulated criteria for the post. The complaint also referred to the apex court’s direction as all public offices to strictly observe the principle of fair play and select the best suitable candidate for the given post on merit on the basis of the candidates’ abilities, experience, qualities and a probe record of accomplishment to match the needs of the appointment in question. Moreover, a committee was also formulated in this regard which issued some its recommendations for the final selection by HEC. It said that the candidate for the post should be preferred to be holding a PhD degree as well as he/she will be required to provide leadership in the higher education sector with a large pool of academicians who hold PhD degrees. Besides, it was asked that the candidate should possess a clear vision for the future of higher education in Pakistan, relevant leadership experience in this field and good understanding of the HEC’s mandate and scope while the candidate’s age also should be not more than 65 years old. It was alleged that Dr Ahmed did not fulfill the said criteria for the post. The HEC act 2002 states “the controlling authority shall appoint a person of international eminence and proven ability who has made significant contribution to higher education as teacher, researcher or administrator, as chairperson on such terms and conditions as it may determine”. Under this section, the search committee was supposed to evaluate the candidates on the basis of their “international eminence” and “proven ability” in the light of their “significant contribution to higher education”. The sources revealed this process was not completely adopted. The academic circles welcomed the move by NAB. In a statement, the Higher Education Working Group on Higher Education Reforms appreciated decision of NAB to investigate the alleged illegal appointment of the HEC chairman. Published in Daily Times, March 13th 2018.