Employees of Sui Southern Gas Company Limited?

It is due respect that I am a law abiding Sindhi citizen of Pakistan . My ancestors were in thought that after creation of Pakistan their social, political, economical and cultural condition and fate would be changed. They will be honored and get a chance to be sophisticated and virtuous citizen of Pakistan, but their romance is shattered and has been lost in the realm of Punjab empire with sharing Pathans and Mohajars- that troika is omnipotent everywhere.

In 1993 Pakistan Peoples Party government under the Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto had appointed 5,000 educated youths of Sindh and Balochistan in Sui Southern Gas Company in accordance with rules and regulations during the period from 1st November 1993 to 30th November 1996, but they were removed from service from November 1, 1996 to December 31, 1998 on purely prejudiced basis in the government of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz Sharif). It was clearly action of apartheid to Sindhies.

The sacked employees had fought a legal combat for their reinstatement for 12 years in the Federal Services Tribunal, High Court and Supreme Court. Supreme Court gave verdict in 2002 in favor of Sui Gas Company employees, but Company management did not heed on that decision. Federal Services Tribunal in 2004 gave a verdict in good turn of sacked employees, but company management did not pay attention to that judgment. However it is true that 478 sacked employees had been reinstated under the order of the Supreme Court while 1,040 sacked employees had also got verdict in their favor in the federal services tribunal, but that matter is lingering on in the territory of High Court .

Against above mentioned cruelties and injustices the sacked employees of Sui Gas Company formed association under the banner of the Sindh and Balochistan Sacked Employees Action Committee. Action Committee continued their struggle and staged demonstrations, processions, hunger strikes, long marches and other civilized ways to take justice outside the press clubs, in front of the Sui Gas Company head office, Parliament House, Supreme Court building and at the Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Islamabad, Quetta and other cities.

After pressure of long legal, political and sophisticated encounter of Sacked Employees Action Committee, President of Pakistan, Honorable Asif Ali Zardari on 14th February 2009 promulgated the sacked Employees (Reinstatement) Ordinance 2009 for providing relief to persons who were appointed in corporation service or autonomous or semiautonomous bodies or in Government service during the period from November 1, 1993 to November 30, 1996 and were removed from service from November 1, 1996 to December 31, 1998. It is provided in the section 3 of Sacked Employees Ordinance 2009:

“Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force, judgment of any Tribunal or a Court including the Supreme Court and the high Court, contract or terms and conditions of service, all persons appointed in corporation or Government Service, during the period from the 1st day of November, 1993 to the 30th day of November, 1996 (both days inclusive) and dismissed, removed or terminated or given forced golden hand shake during the period from the 1st day of November, 1996 to the 31st day of December, 1998 (both days inclusive) shall be reinstated immediately in service on one scale higher to their substantive scale of the post at the time of termination of service and report for duty to their respective departments or organizations.

“Provided that in case of change in scale or structure of any post or cadre by the competent authority after the 31st day of December, 1998, the persons in corporation or Government service on reinstatement shall be placed on, one scale higher than the revised or existing scale of the post.”

However it is regret that the sacked employees are not in real sense of said Ordinance reinstated despite the promulgation of the ordinance had many months lapsed. It was decided in a cabinet meeting the Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and advised the President Asif Ali Zardari to promulgate an ordinance for the reinstatement of the sacked employees, which was done under Article 89 of the Constitution. But certain CEOs and MDs of autonomous and semi-autonomous bodies have not complied with the ordinance. It is said that under Article 50 of the constitution the Parliament therefore an ordinance had the same force as had an act of the Parliament. Till date some departments including the Sui Southern Gas Company have refused to reinstate sacked employees. A continued defiance of the said law by the officers and offices is a breach of privilege of the Parliament because it (the Sacked Employees Reinstatement (Ordinance-2009) is a law promulgated by one of the constituents of the Parliament under the Constituents.

Honorable sir, I would like to inform to you that a three-member bench of the Supreme Court (SC) had recently ordered the reinstatement of 478 employees of the Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) from the date of their termination. The bench was comprised Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Chaudhry Ijaz Ahmed and Justice Jawwad S Khawaja, which was hearing a contempt-of-court petition filed by SSGCL employees to protest the company management’s refusal to implement the apex court’s orders regarding their reinstatement. The court had ordered the company to implement the orders within one week and submit a compliance report with the Supreme Court registrar. Muhammad Akram Sheikh, Syed Iftikhar Hussain Gillani and Shoaib Shaheen, counsels for the petitioners, had argued that the SSGCL tried to reinstate the employees from the date of SC verdict in 2002, while their reinstatements should have been from the date of their termination from service, in 1996. After hearing arguments from both sides, the court had ordered the reinstatement of these employees from the date of their termination.

It is true that the bureaucracy (or establishment has been always part and parcel of military governments) is trying to create hurdles in the reinstatement of the sacked employees. The management of Sui Gas company recently on the date of 27th June 2009 issued the fake conform letter to the reinstated employees, in which Company had over feint all the rules and regulations of aforesaid Ordinance. In such letter, the Gas Company management had given such employee number to employee, which is clearly a drama. In the company, conform employee’s employee number is finished at 25000 (five digit), but under the said Ordinance new reinstated employee has given a number with five digit, and as a staff employee given a 6 number (e.g. 3545 changed into 63545) and as a executive employee 7 number (e.g. 4732 changed into 74732) before their past temporary assignment number.

In aforesaid fake order there is no room to designation, pay scale, seniority and other terms and conditions although provided in the Ordinance that in case of change in scale or structure of any post or cadre by the competent authority after the 31st day of December, 1998, the persons in corporation or Government service on reinstatement shall be placed on, one scale higher than the revised or existing scale of the post.

And it is also keep in mind that in the said Ordinance it was provided that “where due to non availability of sanctioned posts or an equivalent scale post in corporation or Government service, the Secretary of the respective Ministry, Division, head of the department or corporation or organization shall immediately create supernumerary posts to accommodate the reinstated employees and such arrangement shall continue till the availability of regular posts are made available” but the company management has included the word in Para 4: “and such arrangement shall continue till a regular post in accordance with your qualification and expertise, become available.”

It is significance that in said Ordinance is provided that reinstated employees would be conform and assimilate employees to Sui Gas Company (and Managing Director of Sui Gas Company at Karachi Head Office and Minister of Manpower and works Syed Khurshid Ali Shah at Sukkur Airport had said that sacked employee are employee of Sui Gas Company) but Sui Gas Company management has said in Para 2 of aforementioned order that: “please be informed that your future remuneration from the month of July 2009, onward, shall only be paid to you on receipt of the demanded funds, from the Government of Pakistan, for which a summary has been moved by the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Resources,” which is clearly against the essence of the said Ordinance.

The Sui Gas Company had promised to be remunerated till 30th June 2009, but their promise did not meet the objective. In due course of nearly fifteen days many sacked employees had got heart attack, and they are hospitalized in medical centers, but one employee named Bakhtiar has been died due heart attack on Thursday 2nd July 2009 at Karachi.

Honorable sir, Sui Southern Gas Company has issued a new order to sacked employees on date 8th July 2009. In such “Reinstatement/ Regularization Letter” Company has allocated the reinstated employee new employee number- 3545 has been changed into 26178. At the behest of the above letter the employee will only draw remuneration as per subordinate grade inclusive of basic and all other benefits as permissible under the Company’s rule- grass Rs. 8260/- but he is not adjusted against the regular post. The Company has said in the letter that; “You will be adjusted against the posts as and when a post commensurate to your qualification and experience falls vacant. Your remuneration, as above, shall be paid to you on receipt of equivalent funds from Government of Pakistan.”

Sir, it is fact that Company managements have allegedly with collaboration of many contractors (for only vested interests) given allocation to many contract companies to be appointed the contract employee or human resources. It is truth that there are nearly 1800 hundred Human Resources, approximately 1300 contract security employees, and nearly 2000 meter readers (5000 illegally appointment with the permission of the concerned Petroleum and Natural Resources Ministry or any legal jurisdiction), which were appointed after the termination of the said sacked employees from corporation service or autonomous or semiautonomous bodies or in Government service during the period from November 1, 1993 to November 30, 1996 and were removed from service from November 1, 1996 to December 31, 1998. It is bad omen to Company that the people’s wealth is ransacking by Company’s management and it is allocating the contractors nearly 5 to 7 crore rupees per month.

It is ironically that conform employee of Sui Gas Company babble the reinstate employee that you are “katcha” (not conform employee) and your condition is lesser than the daily wages employee. And also Officers and Staff employees associations have refused to member any reinstated employee. They allegedly say that Sui Gas Company has bunged them to contact any reinstate employee till further order.

Anyone who is reasonable and commonsense person, above mentioned situation and condition is not acceptable, which in turn may be hazard and paranoid to anything.

Therefore I pray to you SAVE OUR SOUL AND DO JUSTICE.

Mohammad Hussain Badshah soomro

A-1, Soomra Bazar, Wadhu Wah road ,

UC-3, Taluka Qasimabad, Hyderabad

Cell: 0333-2776561

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