The appointment process for the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ignite National Technology Fund has been halted once again.
The position, which has remained vacant for 14 months, is expected to remain unfilled for a further period. The Ministry of IT and Telecommunication has now decided to initiate the recruitment process for the third time.
A crucial meeting of Ignite’s Board of Directors, chaired by IT and Telecom Secretary Zarar Hasham failed to finalize the appointment of a permanent CEO. Sources indicate that none of the shortlisted candidates from the interviews conducted in August 2024 received approval for the position. Disagreements among board members prevented a consensus on a single candidate.
As a result, the board has decided to re-advertise the position. Additionally, the upper age limit for the CEO role has been increased from 50 to 60 years. This adjustment will allow candidates who were previously disqualified due to age restrictions to reapply. The advertisement for the post is expected to be published in the coming days.
Since January 17, 2024, the CEO position at Ignite has remained vacant. General Manager Corporate Affairs Adeel Ejaz Sheikh has been serving as the acting CEO since January 18, 2024. This will be the third time the post is being advertised after two unsuccessful attempts at finalizing an appointment.
Delays in the recruitment process have been attributed to the IT Secretary’s failure to convene board meetings in a timely manner. Secretary Zarar Hasham, who was appointed in September last year, had not called a meeting of the Ignite board until recently. The board meeting was only convened after the ProPakistani highlighted the issue.
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Kudos to Propakistani for highlighting the mismanagement of the ceo position and the board at ignite by ministry because of its vested interests. Lets hope that a new CEO is selected based on merit instead of nepotism and political connections which is usually the case with the current govt and this process completes by next quarter which is already delayed by more than a year.