Daily Times

Grade 17 to 22 dual nationality holding government officers in Pakistani infrastructure are as many as 22,380.These also include Ambassadors. Here, because of limited space it is  impossible to name all of these dual nationals. On January 19 the Counter Terrorism Department opened fire on innocent Khalil Ahmad’s  family and their driver Zeeshan. They were not terrorists at all. After this brutal savage incident Counter Terrorism Department spokesperson Nabeela Ghazanfar BPS-19 started giving different versions about CTD Sahiwal Tragedy. She is a Canadian national. It is coincident that Additional Inspector General Police who is head of Joint Investigation Team(JIT) of Sahiwal Tragedy is also blessed with Canadian nationality. Out of these 22,380 dual national Pakistani officers, 1100 are  ‘serving’ in Police and bureaucracy. Out of these 540 are Canadian, 240 British, 190 American and dozens enjoying nationalities of Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Ireland and Bahrain. One hundred and ten officers are also ‘ serving ‘ on high level government positions. Out of these six are grade 22 officers while 11 are on MP-1 scale, 40 in grade 21, 90 in grade 20, 160 in grade 19, 220 in grade 18 and 160 in grade 17. Likewise 20 in Interior Division, 44 in Power Division, 92 in Aviation Division, 64 in Finance Division, 96 in Petroleum, 10 in Commerce Division, 26 in Income Tax, 25 in Information and Broadcasting, 22 in Establishment, 7 in National Food Security,11 in Capital Administration, 16 in Communication, 8 in Railways and 6 in Cabinet Division are holding key posts.

Education Department is on top as 140 dual nationals are ‘serving’ the nation. Similarly 80 in PIA, 55 in Local Government, 55 in Special Health Care, 30 in National Bank of Pakistan, 60 in Science and Technology, 40 in Agriculture, 20 in Security and Exchange Commission, 20 in Irrigation, 30 in Sui Southern, 20 in Sui Northern, 17 in PMS, 14 in Pakistan Administrative Service and 15 in NADRA are enjoying heavy salaries, perks and privileges. Among these dual nationality holder high level bureaucrats, Chief Secretary Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa Naveed Kamran Baloch is Canadian national, first lady President PAS and grade 22 Federal Secretary Human Rights Division Rabia Agha a British national, Secretary Board of Investment grade 22 Sardar Ahmad Nawaz Sukhera an American national, Director General Passport and Immigration grade 21 Ishrat Ali a British national, former Secretary Investment Board grade 22 Sumera Nazir Siddiqui New Zealand, Secretary Evacuee Trust  Punjab grade 20 Zulfiqar Ahmad Ghumman, an American national.

In Panama case, the irrelevant Aqama matter was made reason to oust the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif from the government but these known dual national high level government positions holders could not be removed. Are they above the law or more powerful than the prime minister?

Former Ambassador in Morocco Nadir Choudhry  is a British national, former Ambassador in Qatar Shahzad Ahmad, a British national, Additional Federal Secretary Finance grade 21 Ahmad Mujtaba Memon, a Canadian national, Chief Collector Customs grade 21 Zeba Hayee Azhar, a Canadian national, Police Service grade 22 Iqbal Mehmood, a Canadian national, Accountant General Punjab grade 21 Mian Shuja ud din Zaka Canadian national, Chairperson Punjab Commission for Women Rights  Fozia Waqar, a Canadian national, former Managing Director Pakistan Petroleum Limited Syed Wamiq Bukhari, an American national, present Managing Director Moeen Raza Khan, a British national, former President National Bank of Pakistan, Saeed Ahmad, a British national, Director General Punjab Forensic Science Agency Dr Mohammad Ashraf, an American national and Press Information Officer of Press Information Department grade 20 Jahangir Iqbal, a Canadian national. Salman Sufi who has been providing legal expertise to PMLN Punjab government is an American national. Chief Operating Officer Health Care Commission grade 20 Dr Mohammad Ajmal, a Canadian national, Additional Secretary Interior grade 21 Sher Afgan Khan, an American national, Joint Secretary grade 20 Prime Minister office Ahsan Ali Mangi, a British national, Rashid Mansoor grade 20, a Canadian national, Ali Sarfraz Hussain grade 20, a British national, Mohammad Aslam Rao grade 18, a British national, Sara Saeed grade 20, a British national, Adnan Qader Khan grade 18, a British national, Saima Ali grade 18, a British national, DIG Special Branch grade 20 Zaeem Iqbal Sheikh, a British national, Commandant Lahore Police Training College DIG Mirza Faran Baig, a British national, DIG Communication grade 20 Shahid Javed,a  Canadian national, SPS Gwader Barkat Hussain Khosa grade 19, a Canadian national, SSP grade 19 Nadim Hasan, a Canadian national, SP grade 18 Adil Mamon and Aqeel Ahmad Khan grade 18 , both American nationals……a list of such thousands more dual nationals is so long that it can’t be given in this limited space of a column.

Former Chief Justice Supreme Court of Pakistan Justice (R) Saqib Nisar took notice on this serious matter of dual nationality. He was of the view that dual nationals have taken oaths assuring their loyalties to different related countries. According to his verdict either they will have to withdraw opted-for nationality or resign from government service. After his retirement nobody knows the fate of this case. In Panama case, the irrelevant Aqama matter was made reason to oust the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif from the government but these known dual national high level government positions holders could not be removed. Are they above law or more powerful than the prime minister? These dual nationals are playing with the fate of Pakistan. The sooner the decision of this case the better. We have dual nationals in government offices but should we have dual standards of justice for them? Should not the same law be enough and effective to oust these dual nationality holders from government offices which kicked former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif from PM House? Pakistan is a strange wonderland where Aqama- holding former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is kicked out while British national Zulfi Bukhari is brought from England and bestowed with the federal government ministry of Overseas Pakistanis. What a pity! What an interpretation of law and constitution in the new Madina, the Model State of Pakistan! What a justice!

Published in Daily Times, February 6^th 2019.