Major overhaul in FBR

ISLAMABAD: In a major reshuffle in the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), the government on Tuesday transferred 38 senior officers.

The decision came one week after the appointment of Tariq Bajwa, a BS-21 officer of Pakistan Administrative Service (formerly DMG cadre) as new FBR chairman.

Mr Bajwa will be the third PAS officer to be elevated to the post of the FBR chairman in the last one decade.

Earlier, he worked as secretary of finance with Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif.

It is believed to be a major shakeup in the tax department by the ruling PML-N to establish its economic team for boosting revenue collection and to achieve the target of Rs2475bn for the fiscal year 2013-14.

Tax officers have started seeking political support for postings or transfers as further reshuffling is on the card.

The year 2012-13 was one of the worst years in the history of the tax machinery as FBR witnessed more than Rs440bn shortfall in revenue collection.

Customs duties were the only federal tax which not only recorded a growth but also surpassed the target for 2012-13.

To accommodate senior officers at FBR, the post of member Inland Revenue Service (IRS) was split into two positions. Shahid Husain Asad was posted as member IR Policy and Mohammad Ashraf Khan was given the post of member IR Operations.

Earlier, these functions were performed by a single member.

Three senior officers of the IRS group were transferred and posted as members at FBR without any assignment. They are Mohammad Raza Baqir, Shahid Anwar Khan and Sajjad Ali, who were earlier posted on key positions.

Four new members were given assignment at FBR. Ch Safdar Hussain was posted as member legal, Musarrat Jabeen as member (HRM); Aftab Anwar Baloch as member (enforcement), and Haroon Mohammad Khan, member tax policy reform.

Heads of the countrys top three large taxpayers units (LTUs) were also transferred.

Ms Yasmin Saud was posted as Chief Commissioner (LTU), Karachi; Mustafa Ashraf as Chief Commissioner LTU, Lahore and Raana Seerat as Chief Commissioner, LTU, Islamabad.

There are 18 regional tax offices (RTOs) in the country. However, only five heads of RTOs were transferred.

Mian Saeed Iqbal was posted as Chief Commissioner RTO, Islamabad. Two junior officers were also posted as Chief Commissioners of RTOs on their own pay and scale. They are Rehmatullah Khan Wazir, Chief Commissioner RTO, Karachi and Dr Mohammad Irshad, Chief Commissioner RTO II, Lahore.

Two officers are doing their National Management Course (NMC) to qualify for promotion to senior grade, but they were posted against elevated posts of chief commissioners. Mohammad Asif was posted as Chief Commissioner RTO Gujranwala and Shaukat Mahmood as Chief Commissioner Sargodha. Both officers will assume their new assignments after completion of NMC. Javed Iqbal Mirza was posted as Chief FBR.

Mohammad Riaz was posted as D-G Customs Intelligence; Nisar Mohammad Khan as Member Customs, Mohammad Yahya, Chief Collector Enforcement South, Chief Collector Customs South, Karachi; Nasir Masroor Ahmad, Chief Collector Appraisement, Chief Collector Customs South, Karachi; Riffat A Hassan Abidi, Chief FBR; Fazal Yazdani Khan, Collector, Model Customs Collectorate of Preventive, Karachi; Abdul Rashid Sheikh, collector (East), Model Customs Collectorate of Appraisement, Karachi; Amer Ahmad, Director, Directorate General of internal audit (Customs), Karachi; Dr Zulfiqar Ahmad Malik, Director, Directorate of Post Clearance Audit, Karachi and Mohammad Saleem, Collector West, Model Customs Collectorate of Appraisement, Karachi.