ISLAMABAD: The Constit­utional Bench of the Supreme Court on Friday expressed concern over the delay in appointing the chairman of the Climate Change Authority, established under the Pakistan Climate Change Act (PCCA) 2017.

The prolonged delay in the appointment process prompted Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, a member of the five-judge CB, to note that climate change is a pressing issue for Pakistan, yet the government’s slow pace, expected to be swift like a leopard, was instead moving at the sluggish pace of a tortoise.

“The law was made in 2017, but neither the chairman has been appointed nor the rules have been finalised so far,” Justice Mandokhail regretted.

The bench had taken up a petition instituted by the Public Interest Law Association of Pakistan through Advocate Syed Faisal Hussain Naqvi, highlighting existential threat the climate change was posing to the country.

Rules not finalised even after eight years, Justice Mandokhail observes

The case was earlier heard by a three-judge SC bench, headed by Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, before it was transferred to the constitutional bench.

On July 1, 2024, the regular bench ordered the federal government to constitute an authority under PCCA within a fortnight and the notification of a duly constituted authority be placed on record before the next hearing.

When the case came up for hearing on Friday, Additional Attorney General (AAG) Chaudhry Aamir Rehman explained that an advertisement had been issued for a third time in an attempt to fill the office of chairman of the five-member climate authority.

In response to Justice Mandokhail’s query about the two previous ads, the AAG said the government had shortlisted three aspirants for the post, but it emerged later that the candidate considered suitable turned out to be a dual national. He added it was the government’s policy that any individual having a dual citizenship could not be considered suitable for official appointments.

The judge remarked sometimes compromises had to be made for an individual possessing high calibre that the government was looking for, adding that the “real issue” was with the provinces wondering how the authority would work there.

When the AAG explained that members of the climate authority from some provinces had been appointed, Justice Ami­nuddin Khan and Justice Mandokhail wondered if those nominated to represent Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, brother of KP CM Ali Amin Gandapur and vice chancellor of Balochistan, respectively, and the bureaucrats from Sindh and Punjab had the relevant expertise needed for the issue as important as climate.

The AAG said the provinces may be approached again to nominate technocrats for the climate authority.

When Justice Mandokhail asked if rules of the authority had been made, the AAG assured the court that a draft of the rules had been prepared and would be furnished before the law ministry for vetting and approval.

Climate Change Secretary Zulfiqar Younis told the court that 752 applications were received last time for the appointment of climate authority members.

Asked why the two other individuals shortlisted for the post were not being considered for appointment, the secretary explained that the remaining two candidates did not fully meet the criteria.

According to the Global Climate Risk Index, Pakistan is currently the fifth most climate-vulnerable country in the world.

On July 5, 2024, the SC regretted that the recent provincial budgets for 2024-25 failed to earmark any fund or come up with any effective strategies to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Published in Dawn, March 22nd, 2025