Government appoints senior secretary to Public Administration ministry

The interim government has finally appointed a senior secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration after the post remained vacant for three weeks.

Md Ehsanul Haque has been appointed as Senior Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration. Until now, he had been serving on contract as Senior Secretary of the Road Transport and Highways Division. He is now being brought to the Ministry of Public Administration under a similar contractual arrangement.

A notification regarding this appointment was issued today, Sunday, by the Ministry of Public Administration.

Following the student-mass uprising, the interim government had appointed Md Mokhlesur Rahman as Senior Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration on a two-year contractual basis. On September 21, he was transferred to the Planning Commission.

Since then, the secretary post at the Ministry of Public Administration had been vacant. As a result, transfers, appointments, and promotions of field-level administrative officers had nearly come to a halt, and several financial matters were also stalled. During this period, an additional secretary had been performing only routine duties at the ministry.

Now, Ehsanul Haque, a 1982 BCS batch officer, has been appointed to this post. The interim government had earlier appointed him as Secretary of the Road Transport and Highways Division on a contractual basis as well.

Rumours had been circulating in the Secretariat that, with the national election approaching, there had been intense internal competition over the secretary position at the Ministry of Public Administration. Officials affiliated with two political parties reportedly wanted someone of their choice to occupy the post, as this ministry handles crucial decisions such as transfers and promotions of district commissioners and other field-level officers.