Naeemuddin Khan appointed as ZTBL chairman

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has accelerated the process of filling important appointments just days before the end of the term.

The government has decided to appoint Naeemuddin Khan as the chairman of the Board of Governors of the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Ltd (ZTBL). The federal cabinet has approved the appointment through a circulation summary. The appointment will be for a period of three years.

The post was vacant since Nadeem Lodhi resigned from the post of Chairman ZTBL last year. The federal cabinet approved the resignation of Nadeem Lodhi on August 10, 2022. Asad Ullah Habib has been acting as the president for the past eight months.

The coalition government has decided to fill key vacant positions in various financial institutions, including the presidency of two state-owned banks.

The positions to be filled include those in the National Bank of Pakistan, Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited, and the Competition Commission of Pakistan. The names of the deputy governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) have yet to be finalized.

In the first phase, the government submitted a summary to fill four vacant positions of members of the Commission of Pakistan (CCP). The antitrust watchdog chairperson Rahat Kunain has also completed her term.

The coalition government has chosen to fill these posts shortly before the end of its term. The delay in appointments was due to a lack of consensus among the coalition partners.

The government has yet to move a summary for the appointment of a new deputy governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to replace Dr Murtaza Syed. The is a violation of the SBP Act by not moving the appointment summary within one month.