Over a dozen civil services officers working from basic pay scale grade 18 to grade 22 working in different government departments hold dual nationalities.
This was disclosed during the question hour in the National Assembly on Monday. In its second one-day session of the 16th National Assembly, MNA Rana Ansar asked the minister in charge of the Establishment Division to provide the names, designations, service groups, or departments of all government officers of BPS-17 and above who hold dual nationality and the second nationality that they hold.
In response, the Establishment Division provided a list of 20 officers (available with The Friday Times) who hold dual nationalities and are currently working in various government departments, including law enforcement.
These officers are from the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP), and the Secretariat Group (SG). The Establishment Division administers these government services.
Of the officers listed as holding foreign nationalities, ten were nationals of the United Kingdom, six of Canada and four of the USA.
The list provided by the Establishment Division listed BPS-22 grade Sarah Saeed (PAS), a UK national, serving as the Special Secretary in the Commerce Division.
In BPS-21, two officers held dual nationalities, including Samar Ihsan (SG), who served as an additional secretary for the Economic Affairs Division and is Canadian. The other BPS-21 officer was Jan Muhammad (PSP), who is an Additional Director General at the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) headquarters in Islamabad and is British.
Five officers in BPS-20 were dual nationals. These include US national Muhammad Wishaq (SG), a joint secretary for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, and US national Ghulam Mujtaba Joyo (SG), an officer on special duty (OSD) in the Establishment Division.
UK national Tuha Ahmed Faruqui (SG) is serving as the secretary for the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities in the Sindh government. UK national Zaeem Iqbal Sheikh (PSP) is serving as a director in the FIA at its headquarters in Islamabad. Canadian national Shahid Javed (PSP) is serving as a Deputy Inspector General (DIG) on N-5, central zone in the National Highways and Motorways Police (NHMP).
At least 10 officers in BPS-19 were also working across the government, including PAS and PSP officers, the latter appointed in police, civil intelligence, and administrative affairs.
Two officers in BPS-18 were also named. One was Canadian national Rabia Aurangzaib (PAS), who is currently in the Interior Division in Islamabad, while the other is UK citizen Jawed Ahmed Baloch (PSP), who is working as a deputy director in the FIA.
According to the Immigration and Passports Directorate General, Pakistanis are legally allowed to hold a second nationality of 21 countries including the UK, the USA and Canada among other European countries and the odd Middle Eastern countries. However, according to the law civil servants must surrender their second nationality before taking up a position in government as a civil servant. In fact, former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan had at one point suggested sacking all civil servants who continued to hold dual nationality while working in government.
PIA loans
In a separate question to the Aviation Division under Federal Defence and Aviation Minister Khawaja Asif, details of the extra-ordinary domestic and foreign loans outstanding against the national flag carrier, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
The newly formed government informed that PIA has Rs429.2 billion in outstanding loans from various creditors, including banks and the federal government.
The Ministry for Aviation, in a written reply to a question filed by MNA Rana Ansar, informed that PIA's total loans from banks have increased to Rs268.2 billion. In contrast, those from the government have increased to Rs161.06 billion.
In a written reply, the PIA informed that it obtained these loans to address cash flow constraints, induct aircraft, and procure spares as part of operational requirements.
PIA said it is facing severe cashflow challenges, which are causing fleet constraints and affecting punctuality and other flight operations.
On the question related to Climate change, the Minister for Climate Change informed that Pakistan is one of the most Climate-Vulnerable countries in the world. Quoting the German Watch, Global Climate Risk Index, 2021, the minister responded that Pakistan ranks eighth among the most climate-vulnerable countries in the world. A single event of 2022 floods inflicted a loss and damage of approximately $30 billion to the economy.
As the session commenced with the question hour, opposition lawmakers started raising points of order on various matters, including the recent letter from six judges of the Islamabad High Court. Despite the Speaker's repeated instructions, the MNAs continued to raise points of order.