LAHORE, July 12: Following the tradition set by the last PPP government, the PML-N has also started ad hoc appointments of chief executives of distribution companies, ignoring all legal formalities and skirting the system it has promised to follow and bring transparency in recruitment process.

On Friday, the “competent authority” at the Ministry of Water and Power appointed Chief Engineer Arshad Rafiq as “acting CEO” of the Lahore Electric Supply Company. The letter said this was an interim arrangement till the appointment of a regular CEO.

“The acting CEO shall seek advice and approval of the ministry in all major financial and policy-related matters before disposal,” the letter instructs. The competent authority also relieved the previous CEO, who also happened to be working on an ad hoc basis and was appointed by the PPP government.

According to the Lesco officials, by directly appointing the new CEO, the ministry has bypassed the Lesco Board of Directors, which it appointed only a week ago. It was not only the appointment, but the new CEO has also been instructed to directly seek approval of the ministry in all financial and policy-related matters, which, otherwise, as per company laws, is the prerogative of the board of directors.

The ministry had disbanded the last BoD on July 3 when it was holding a meeting at the Lesco headquarters. The last board was told to abort the meeting because a new BoD is being notified. A new 10-member board was notified within an hour. The ministry, in the same executive order, also appointed Waqar A Khan as BoD chairman, instead of letting the board members elect one.

Explaining the reason behind replacing an “acting CEO with an ad hoc chief executive,” a Lesco official said: “Barely within a week, the new board has been rendered powerless with a new executive order. The BoD can neither administratively govern the company nor financially. In fact, it is a tug of war which is going on within the sector now.

The new BoD had reportedly been proposed by the chief minister and approved by the prime minister. Whereas, the ministry took it as an interference in its affairs and issued an executive order virtually stripping the new BoD of its administrative and financial powers that the Company Ordinance grants it.

The CEO of the Gujranwala Electric Supply Company was also changed on the same pattern. The new CEO there happens to be the chief engineer who has been serving in Sialkot till recently.”

No one from the ministry was available for comments on the new notification.