ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: A detailed government investigation has unveiled widespread administrative failures and negligence within the Ministry of National Food Security & Research (MoNFS&R) and Department of Plant Protection (DPP), specifically highlighting the decades-long stagnation of the Central Plant Quarantine Laboratory (CPQL) project. Conducted by a committee constituted by Prime Minister Mian Shehbaz Sharif, the inquiry attributes significant lapses to multiple officials from these agencies.
The committee, comprising former and current government officials, including Mr. Shahid Khan, Mr. Waseem Ajmal Chaudhry, Mr. Muhammad Shakeel Mangnejo, and Dr. Shahid from HEJ Institute, was tasked with identifying those responsible for the ongoing inactivity of CPQL. Founded in 2001 with the objective of bolstering Pakistan’s agricultural biosecurity and phasing in compliance with international standards, the CPQL has remained all but dormant despite considerable investment and planning.
As per available documents related to the inquiry, the inquiry attributes these setbacks to chronic budget shortfalls, ineffective procurement processes, and a glaring dearth of recruitment for necessary technical positions. The incomplete operationalization of CPQL has been further compromised by systemic record-keeping failures after devolution of Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MINFA) following 18th Constitutional Amendment and a failure to adapt to evolving international phytosanitary standards, such as the crucial separation of roles, inspection, sampling and testing of goods for identification of pests, biosecurity clearance order and phytosanitary certification within the DPP to eliminate conflicts of interest and providing fair and transparent independent sample testing opportunity.
Moreover, the report criticizes the management shifts caused by the 18th Amendment, which convoluted agriculture governance by partitioning it to provincial management. The CPQL project has been beleaguered by unsynchronized attempts at outsourcing and a lack of strategic planning, significantly undermining its original operational capacity.
While financial embezzlement was not identified as a significant concern within the committee’s findings, the report castigates long-standing inefficiencies and inadequate accountability protocols. It underscores the urgency of conducting feasibility studies for CPQL’s long-term viability and recommends adopting a model involving robust public-private partnerships and restructuring to secure fiscal resilience.
However, not all implicated officials extended during the inquiry emerged without controversy; conspicuous omissions of notable names (Mr. Junaid Iqbal, Mr. Shafqat Hussain Nagmi, Mr. Ahmad Bukhsh Lehri, Mr. Fazal Abbas Maken, Capt. Retd., Muhammad Mehmood, Mr. Muhammad Fakhar Alam, Mr. Ali Tahir, Mr. Waseem Ajmal Chaudhry, Dr. Syed Bilal Haider, Mr. Waqas Alam and Mr. Tahir Abbas) in accountability sparking questions over the integrity and comprehensiveness of the probe. Allegations over administrative bias and political manoeuvring have surfaced, with charges aimed at unjust oversight of certain officers and sidelining of authority figures onto whom responsibility ostensibly fell more squarely.
Several high-ranking officials namely Mr. Muhammad Ismail Qureshi Secretary Retd. (2004-2007), Mr. Zia ur Rehman Secretary Retd. (2007-2010), Mr. Seerat Asghar Jaura Secretary (Retd.,) (2013 to 2016), Mr. Abid Javid, Secretary (Retd.,) (2016-2017, Mr. Hashim Populzai Secretary (Retd.,) (2018-2020), Mr. Ghufran Memon, former Secretary (2020-202), Mr. Zafar Hassan, former Secretary (2022-2023) were fixed in the enquiry over perceived negligent governance spanning years of delayed recruitment proceedings and procedural detachment. This administrative failing is further magnified by recorded lapses during critical documentation and budget management that reportedly impaired pivotal laboratory functions and thwarted operations. These officials are likely to receive show-cause notices from Establishment Division because Mr. Ahad Cheema, former retired bureaucrat turn politician, Federal Minister for Economic Affair Division (EAD) and Establishment Division is personally pursuing the disciplinary proceedings on behalf of the premier.
The committee identified one of key character Mr. Rashid Mehmood Langrial, former Additional Secretary (Plan) in MoNFS&R that turned down the proposal of the DPP for functionalization of CPQL and instructed DPP to get samples of import and export commodities tested from other public and private laboratories during Imran Khan Government under federal minister Mr. Khusro Bakhtiar. Mr. Rashid Mehmood Langrial is currently working as Chairman, FBR being favourite of the premier despite constant questioned credibility and compromised integrity in the past as commissioner Lahore Division, CEO of National Power Parks Management Company (NPPMCL) (Pvt.), Chairperson Lahore Ring Road Authority, CEO Balloki Power Plant, Secretary Power Division etc., on allegations of corruption, kickbacks, commission in contracts and allotment of prime land of the River Ravi to key politician, a senior retired bureaucrat served in Anti-corruption and NAB revealed.
The inquiry report accuses multiple Directors-General (DGs) namely Mr. Allah Rakha Asi, DG (Retd.,) (2005-2008), Dr. Tasneem Ahmed, DG (Retd.,) (2008-2011), Mr. Muhammad Ikhlaque Rana DG (Retd., &late) (2011-2014), Dr. Mubarak Ahmed DG (Retd.,) (2011-2015), S.M. Imran Shami, DG (Retd.,) (2015-2016), Dr. Waseem ul Hassan, former DG, (2017 to 2018), Dr. Falak Naz, former DG, (2018 to 2020), Mr. Allah Ditta Abid, former DG, (2020-2021 & 2022-2024) and Dr. Muhammad Tariq Khan, former DG (2021-2022 & 2024) for failure to operationalize the project and continued to seek revisions of PC-I, lacking utilization of imported equipment’s, ten fumigation chambers, and four truck movers.
The notable names of Director Technical in the list include Mr. Akbar Zardari, former Director Technical on deputation in DPP from Sindh Agriculture Extension (2011-2013), Mr. Shahid Abdullah, Director Technical, P&D (2020-2024), Mr. Muhammad Sohail Shahzad, Director Technical Quarantine (2020, 2021 & 2023) for failing to maintain laboratory equipment and ensuring proper documentation and were issued show cause notices to submit their replies within 10 days. Despite these officials were not posted against post of Director (P&D) that was responsible for functionalization of CPQL.
However, the committee could not fix names of two former Director Technical, Mr. Safdar Ali, Mr. Azam Khan, (2014-2016) and one present Director Quarantine, Dr. Qasim Khan Kakar (2024) in the enquiry report because their names were not included in the list of officers that had been posted against posts of Director Quarantine, Director (P&D) or Director Technical in DPP made and forwarded by Mr. Tahir Abbas, DG, DPP and Dr. Syed Bilal Haider.
An officer in MoNFS&R revealed that Mr. Tahir Abbas, DG, DPP and Syed Bilal Haider were mastermind behind nominating names of the officials in the list supplied to enquiry committee from Ministry and DPP. They excluded names of those officials having backing from the premier office and substituted their names with the ones with whom they wanted to settle their old score in enmity and to continue to occupy posts of DG, DPP for their personal gains.
A particularly alarming revelation in the report is the failure of responsible for record-keeping during the devolution process in 2011. Critical documents related to MoNFS&R’s projects were either lost or improperly archived, making it difficult to track financial allocations and recruitment procedures. The inquiry named Mr. Arif Tehsin (currently serving as Additional Secretary in GB) and Mr. Hussain Jaffar (former Director Admin Retd., DPP & Mr. Muzaffar Iqbal, Deputy Director, P&D Retd.,) among those responsible for negligence in this regard. They were also issued show cause notices.
The accused officials highlighted that even a decade after these events, accusations of inefficiency and misconduct have been levied against them, despite retirements of many officials, 3 to 15 years ago. This alone questions the validity of such retrospective allegations. Further, the inquiry report itself recognizes that the acquisition and planning of the fumigation chambers were ill-conceived because neither these chambers were too insufficient to fumigate all importable and exportable commodities on daily basis nor it was feasible for the importers and exporters to first transfer their commodities from their containers to DPP fumigation chambers at ports and after treatment, again re-shift treated commodities to their containers whereas, all containers carrying plant and plant products are built in for fumigation and other concerned treatment. As the laboratory require the staff to functionalize it and the staff could not be recruited till to date on red tapism or political wishes, hence, there is no justification to fix its responsibilities on officials that were not given duty for functionalization of CPQL.
The MoNFS&R could not directly issue show cause notices to employees of Sindh Agriculture Department, PARC and employees of other organization on deputation in DPP except civil servants under Federal Government under rules because their charge sheets are required to be sent to their parent departments for disciplinary proceeding under E&D Rules, 2020. The apex court also settled that no disciplinary proceeding cannot be initiated against civil servants after one year of their retirements, a lawyer said.
For now, attention shifts to government responses to the inquiry’s exposé, and whether long-languishing inefficiencies spur the intended palatable reforms or see bureaucratic inertia reinstate the status quo. The ultimate measure lies well within ensuring the strategic yet expedient revivification of CPQL to reinstating confidence and functional assurance, redounding positively across the national agricultural landscape.
