Re: Dr Atta-ur Rehman resigns as HEC Chairman
Rift develops among PPP’s ranks over HEC top slot
By ASMA GHANI submitted 1 day 9 hours ago ISLAMABAD:- A tug of war is in full swing within the ruling Pakistan People’s Party for a lucrative slot of Chairman Higher Education Commission recently vacated by Dr Atta-ur-Rehman.
According to sources, the Cabinet Division has short listed three out of nine aspirants for the HEC chair. All three either directly belong to the ruling party or having clear allegiance to the PPP, the sources added.
The sources told The Nation that the Cabinet Division has already forwarded the summary to Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gailani proposing three names including Dr. Javaid R. Laghari, Dr. Asim Hussain and Shirin R. Tahir Kheli. Although all three short listed candidates are having competitive credentials, the sources tipped Dr. Asim as the most likely to be appointed as Chairman HEC.
At the same time the sources also hinted that the situation could be changed altogether as per the wills and wishes of the ruling party leadership. The sources refered to the practice in the past when the proposed names were dropped at the eleventh hour and suprisingly someone else was appointed. The sources quoted the instance of Shaheen Khan’s recent appointment as Chairperson whose name were not in the wishlist like the appointment of FBISE chairperson.
Dr. Asim Hussain is a Chancellor of Ziauddin University Karachi, a private sector varsity. Officials at the HEC believe that Dr. Asim is the suitable person for the job as he has the experience of running a private university and he can negotiate with the government to release the slashed grant in a better way.
The second contender Dr. Javaid R. Laghari is the President and Project Director of Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Buhtto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST). He specializes in Leadership, Higher Education, Information Technology, High Voltage Systems and Space Power Technology, and has published over 120 research papers and presented over 70 papers at International Conferences.
Prior to joining SZABIST, Dr. Laghari was the Director of Graduate Studies and Tenured Full Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo, USA. SUNY is the largest research university in the United States.
While Shirin R. Tahir Kheli is the Senior Adviser for women’s empowerment to the Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and a director for Democracy, Human Rights and International Operations. Ambassador Tahir Kheli has an M.A. and a Ph.D. in International Relations from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. from Ohio Wesleyan University. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the International Institute for Strategic Studies. http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Islamabad/18-Oct-2008/Rift-develops-among-PPPs-ranks-over-HEC-top-slot