STZA’s mega-scandal: unlawfully appointed COO Masroor Ahmed Qureshi

KARACHI: According to reputable sources, a number of important appointments at the Special Technology Zones Authority (STZA), including Chairman Amer Ahmed Hashmi and Chief Operating Officer (COO) Masroor Ahmed Qureshi, were made unlawfully.

The authority, which was established to foster the growth of Pakistan’s scientific and technical ecosystem, intends to create knowledge ecosystems, investigate and increase Pakistan’s IT potential, and encourage an entrepreneurial and technology-driven future.

Despite these lofty goals, the STZA has struggled to get off the ground due to illegitimate nominations in key positions, according to government sources. The whole process of selecting STZA’s Chairman, Chief Operating Officer, and other executives, according to papers obtained by Bol News, was done in contravention of the established selection procedure.

The chairman of the STZA is a significant position that needs a merit-based appointment via a due procedure that includes a vacancy notification in major media, applicant review, and interviews. The prime minister chooses the chosen candidate when the whole procedure and consultations are completed.

However, Amer Ahmed Hashmi’s appointment as chairman of the STZA was announced in mid-December 2020, following the proper procedure. Hashmi was assigned to the fourth floor of the Prime Minister’s Office on Islamabad’s Constitution Avenue.

Later, on January 3, 2021, the then-government released a “vacancy notice” in local media, requesting applicants for the position of STZA chairman, to cover up the illegitimate and unlawful appointment.

A day later, on January 4, 2021, the official STZA website announced Hashmi’s appointment as the organization’s chairman.

Similarly, the Prime Minister’s Office’s official website reported Hashmi’s appointment as the STZA chairperson on January 8. The Cabinet Division, on the other hand, released the formal announcement on February 16, 2021.

According to an officer at the STZA who requested anonymity, Hashmi was appointed without following the established norms and procedures, demonstrating obvious nepotism and bias.

No committee was ever notified to scrutinise applications for the job of STZA chairman after the Cabinet Division published the advertising on January 3; no shortlisting by the committee was informed; no interview was performed; and no consultation was ever held, he added.

There is no record of how many people applied for the job, how many were shortlisted, and how many were interviewed.

The minimal requirement for the STZA chairmanship has been reduced to a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Business Management, Information Technology, or Electrical Engineering, which appears to be targeted at Hashmi.

According to business rules, written official permission from the Federal Cabinet should have been sought to downgrade the qualification requirements from a Master’s degree to a Bachelor’s degree, but no such permission was ever sought or any such notification ever issued by the Cabinet Division in this case.

Hashmi was in charge of the NUST Science and Technology Park (NSTP) from 2009 to 2019, although the technology park was never active during that time, indicating that he lacks operational science and technology park expertise, which was a prerequisite for the position.

Similarly, Masroor Ahmed Qureshi was named COO in defiance of the position’s norms and responsibilities. According to the newspaper advertisement for the job of COO, the applicant must have at least eight years of experience in C-Level or similar roles in big national and international firms or organisations in relevant positions.

In addition, the candidate had to show a track record of making major judgments in areas relating to the primary duties.

Qureshi, on the other hand, lacks the necessary expertise and a track record of making critical judgments in those areas of responsibility.

Furthermore, there is no evidence that Qureshi has any strong ties to top leadership in the federal, provincial, or local administrations, or that he is knowledgeable about the regulatory regulations that apply to STZA’s expansion across Pakistan.

Similarly, Qureshi lacked experience developing cutting-edge financial strategies for a variety of ventures, particularly large-scale projects involving foreign direct investment (FDI) and public-private partnerships, as well as ensuring operational presences in all areas of cost management, financial reporting, and the development and implementation of financial policies and procedures for organisational excellence and agility.

There is no record of how many applicants applied, were shortlisted, or were interviewed in Masroor Qureshi’s case, because no committee was ever formed to review the applications.

Other STZA officers, including Chief Human Resource Officer Talha Roa, Chief Information Officer Abdul Rahim Ahmed, Director Planning and Strategic Communications Hamza Saeed, Director (Policy) Research and Market Intelligence Muhammad Ali, and Director Licensing Legal and Compliance Iqra Mushtaq, were also illegally appointed.