ISLAMABAD: The Federal Service Tribunal, a quasi-judicial body equated to High Court of province, is facing shortage of staff, undermining its capacity to perform duties efficiently.
The tribunal, established in 1974 in pursuance of Article 212 of the Constitution of Pakistan, 1973, is running with thin judicial staff as the Ministry of Law and Justice had not re-posted five of its staffers at the tribunal from the special court made to hear the treason case of former president Pervez Musharraf.
Talking to Customs Today, FST senior official stated that Ministry of Law and Justice had left the tribunal in doldrums since it was running amid shortage of official staff.
Official staffers who were posted with the special court only perform duty when the special court hold hearing of treason case against former president, FST officer said adding that the court was running with additional staff as officers provided to each judge of three member special court also accompany them at hearing treason case.
As a matter of fact, the FST, a body bearing status of a provincial high court, was running in staff shortage while on the other hand the special court made to hear the treason case was running abandoned staff, FST senior officer said.
Talking about details, he stated that 17 official staffers of FST were taken by the Ministry of Law and Justice and appointed with special court sanctioning that they would return and perform with FST as relived by the special court. However, the proceedings of special court prolonged ever since and the FST could not retain its staff and kept performing with low number of staffers which directly undermined its performance at accomplishing the mandate given to it under the constitution as well as the Service Tribunal Act, 1973.
He underscored that few staffers were returned under condition that they would be posted with special court against whenever it would hold proceedings. One of the FST officials had retired while working with special court while five others had still not reported at FST. They included personal secretary (PS-to be appointed with Member), personal assistant and other clerical staff.
It is pertinent to mention that amid shortage of staffers, couple of members of FST did not have their personal secretaries to assist them in finalizing cases’ decisions as the other members do have. In absence of such circumstances, these members were unable to complete hearings and disposals of cases since they have to wait for assistance from personal secretaries of other members.
