Prime Minister tells Commerce Secretary to settle issue 'out of court': four trade officers' appointment abroad

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has ordered Commerce Secretary Zafar Mehmood to settle 'out of court' the issue of four trade officers' appointment abroad, official sources told Business Recorder on Thursday. According to sources, the Prime Minister had written a letter on January 25, 2011 to the secretary to resolve the issue out of court.
"The hearing of the case will be held on February 21. The Prime Minister has directed the commerce ministry to set up a committee for the settlement of the issue at the earliest. During 2009, the Prime Minister had formally approved the appointment of four trade officers namely Shaharyar Talpur, Nadia Rehman, Fawad Ali Shah and Ayesha Saeed as commercial counsellors abroad. Out of these four appointees, three were from private sector while Fawad was from public sector.
Sources said the Prime Minister Secretariat wrote a letter to the Ministry of Commerce in May 2009 that as the ministry was looking for the selection of candidates on four vacant positions for appointment as the commercial consular, these four candidates should be given priority. Resultantly, the ministry decided to appoint these four candidates as the commercial consulars abroad. Nadia Rehman was appointed in Prague (Czech Republic), Shaharyar Talpur in Santiago (Chile), Ayesha Saeed in Brussels (Belgium) and Fawad Ali Shah in Port Louis (Mauritius).
Against this 'injustice', the Commerce and Trade Group of the Ministry of Commerce approached the Islamabad High Court from where the Ministry of Commerce and Trade secured stay order. But now as the hearing is going to be held on February 21, the ministry has been asked to make out of court settlement of the issue.