ISLAMABAD – The federal government has restructured the Boards of Directors (BoDs) for six Ex-WAPDA Distribution Companies (Discos) and appointed 24 new independent directors to fill 30 board positions.
After three months, the federal government has reconstituted the boards of six out of the 11 Discos. The restructured BoDs are for Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO), Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO), Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (FESCO), Multan Electric Power Company (MEPCO), Peshawar Electric Supply Company (PESCO), and Hazara Electric Supply Company (HAZECO). The BoDs for Gujranwala Electric Power Company (GEPCO), Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (HESCO), Sukkur Electric Power Company (SEPCO), Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESCO), and Tribal Electric Supply Company (TESCO) remain unchanged.
As per the decision, Omer Farooq Khan has been appointed as chairman and independent director of FESCO, along with Zoe Khurshid Khan, Pervaiz Iqbal, Adil Bashir, and Amir Zia as independent directors. Tahir Masood, Syed Ali Murtaza, Dr. Amir Matin, Amna Abbas, and Rana Abdul Sattar have been appointed as independent directors for IESCO’s BoD, with Tahir Masood as the chairman.
Similarly, Amir Zia, Imran Zaffar, Zainab Janjua, Khwaja Jalaluddin Rumi, and Tahir Basharat Cheema have been appointed as independent directors on the MEPCO Board, with Amir Zia as the chairman. For LESCO, Amer Zia, Zafar Mahmood, Zoe Khurshid Khan, Asad Shafi, and Tahir Basharat Cheema have been appointed as independent directors. For PESCO, Himayat Ullah Khan, Tahir Ali Khan, Fazal-e-Khaliq, Saima Akbar Khattak, and Saud Azam have been appointed as independent directors, with Himayat Ullah Khan as the chairman.
For HAZECO, Himayat Ullah Khan, Tahir Ali Khan, Fazal-e-Khaliq, Saima Akbar Khattak, and Saud Azam have been appointed as independent directors, with Himayat Ullah Khan also serving as the chairman. Some candidates have been appointed to multiple Discos, indicating a shortage of qualified candidates for independent director positions. Amir Zia has been appointed to the BoD of three Discos and nominated as chairman of two. Zoe Khurshid Khan, Himayat Ullah Khan, and Tahir Basharat Cheema have been appointed to two BoDs each.
Previously, the government had decided to remove independent directors from the BoDs of nine Discos due to poor performance. However, a legal glitch delayed the reconstitution. In June 2024, the federal government amended the State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Act 2023 to address this issue. Now, the government has successfully removed independent directors from six BoDs.
