IHC directs to remove Arif Usmani, Chairman NBP
Aftab Ahmed
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has ordered the immediate dismissal of National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) Chairman Zubyr Soomro and President/Chief Executive Officer Arif Usmani from their positions.
The reserved verdict was announced by Justice Mohsin Akhter Kiyani on Tuesday.
On June 12, the IHC reserved its decision on four similar petitions contesting the nomination of the president and chairman of the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP).
After hearing all parties’ arguments, a single bench of the IHC comprised of Justice Mohsin Akhter Kayani heard four petitions filed separately challenging the appointment of the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) President, Arif Usmani, and the board of directors (BoD) Chairman, Zubair Soomro, and reserved its verdict.
During the hearing of the petitions filed by four persons, namely Syed Jahangir, Javed Iqbal, Fazal Raheem, and Latif Qureshi, an officer of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) provided a record pertaining to the appointment of the NBP President, Zubair Soomro.
The court questioned how Soomro was nominated chairman of the NBP when there were thousands of qualified bankers available. The NBP’s attorney said in court that the State Bank had recommended the name to the federal government. The court requested records from the finance ministry and reserved its judgement.
Previously, Usmani’s attorney, Ahmed Bilal Sufi, declared that the NBP had produced a solid profit under the present president’s supervision.
He also cited research from The Wall Street Journal claiming that physics graduates are successful in all fields.
The court stated that if a degree has no link to a field, a judge could be appointed as the head of a bank.
Advocate GM Chaudhry, Latif Qureshi’s lawyer, noted that other people had excelled in physics.
He went on to say that this had also breached their rights, as they were also entitled to apply for the position in the same manner.
According to Soomro’s counsel, the petitions are motivated by malice because the petitioner is not an impacted party.
According to the constitution, any person can make a petition in any matter, according to Advocate Waqar Naqvi. He claimed that there is a fresh cause of action for illegal appointments every day, and Transparency International Pakistan (TIP) has uncovered wrongdoing in the bank.
In his argument, advocate Shahid Kamal stated that Usmani had shared his CV with Asad Umar, and the president had confessed it numerous times. He also read the transcript of Usmani’s interview in court.
Federal Minister Asad Umar chose Arif Usmani as President of the National Bank of Pakistan because he was an old friend, as Arif Usmani admitted in a video clip.
Earlier, the County’s only bank having millions of accounts on its list has president, selected by PTI Govt, through social media App—WhatsApp—as the top candidate before the selection committee for the post of president of NBP had already acquaintances with the then finance minister, Asad Umer Khan.
NBP President, Arif Usmani, made these stunning revelations before the parliamentary committee by saying, “I send my CV to Asad Umer on WhatsApp. Later, my interview was through Video Link by a selection committee comprising Asad Umer, Dr. Isharat Hussein, and Razak Dawood.”
READ Another financial scam against NBP-Funds unearthed in Lahore: Report.
Narrating his appointment for the country’s top only state-owned bank, Mr. Usmani further said, “I told the interview committee, I have worked with the then president of NBP, Munir Kamal–real brother of Asad Umer—but assured the parliamentary committee that his appointment is “Purely” on merit, he emphasized.
Arif Usmani, further justifying his appointment on merit in NBP, said, “I have kicked out incompetent officers from the bank. They are propagating such stories against me.”
To a question about charges of money laundering on NBP president, the NBP president made it clear, “He has no case of money laundering in his previous assignment in Nigeria.”
READ NBP-Fund using ‘NBP’s Wheel Logo’ without registering with IPO-Pakistan: Report.
Currently, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), along with the Finance Ministry, is tough against the money launders in financial institutions, particularly banks and other relating institutions like Insurance, to comply with FATF guidelines.
NBP in the USA
To another query of appointments in the NBP branch in the USA and why Bank’s Risk Manager is operating from Manila, the NBP president Arif Usmani explained, “NBP has employed 22 officers in New York purely on merit. NBP branch in New York is also one of losing making oversee branch. Still, NBP is finding it difficult to wind up its operation in the USA because of strict banking laws and regulations,” Mr. Usmani added.
Regarding NBP’s risk manager for the USA operating from Manila, NBP President further explained that the NBP board specially permitted the Risk Manager to operate from Manila.
