Principal Secretary to President Asif Ali Zardari, Salman Faruqui, has been given the additional charge of Federal Ombudsman (Wafaqi Mohtasib). Establishment Division issued a notification in this regard on Saturday. The post remained vacant for two years since the then Ombudsman Javed Malik completed his four-year tenure.

Faruqui has previously served as Secretary to the then Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, and as Additional Secretary to the then Prime Minister, Muhammad Khan Junejo. It has been learnt that Faruqui would serve conditionally for two months without pay. He also called on Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on Saturday. Around 75,000 complaints filed by aggrieved people against federal institutions are lying pending with the Mohtasib for the past two years. The post of Ombudsman is a constitutional post, which has a tenure of four years.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2012