ISLAMABAD: Leader of Opposition in National Assembly Khurshid Ahmed Shah has written a letter to the prime minister, drawing his attention to concerns among officials of the secretariat and office management groups over the government’s decision to reduce their quota in promotions.

According to a press release, Mr Shah has deplored the government’s move to reduce the quota through an SRO (statutory regulatory order), terming it against the spirit of rule of law and justice.

He said that more than 1,000 deserving officials of the two groups had been deprived of their right to get promotion as their share had been distributed among officials belonging to other groups.

There could be no major changes in an act of parliament through SROs, he said, asking Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to restore the “original structure” of the civil service and give due right to deserving officials.

A spokesman for Mr Shah said that the SRO had been issued in February last year. “This is the second letter written by the opposition leader to the prime minister in this regard. He has also raised the issue on the floor of the National Assembly in the presence of the premier.”

In his previous letter, he said, Mr Shah had expressed concern over the decisions of the Central Selection Board and urged Mr Sharif to review the promotions of officials in BPS-19, 20 and 21.

He alleged that officials belonging to smaller provinces, particularly Sindh and Balochistan, had suffered injustice in promotion as junior officials from Punjab had been given preference at their cost.

The issue has also been raised in the Senate by members belonging to the Pakistan People’s Party and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

Mr Shah has written another letter to the prime minister, asking him to regularise the services of contract employees working in ministries and departments of the federal government.

Published in Dawn, January 7th, 2016