No Baloch among 20 NBP foreign posted bankers

By Our Correspondent

QUETTA:  Baloch bankers have been completely ignored by the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP)  in its recent foreign postings. Every year, the NBP sends several senior bankers on international postings in order to acknowledge their services,  provide them a new challenging work atmosphere and develop their professional skills.

This year, the county’s official bank has posted 20 officials in different Asian and European banks but not a single Baloch or Balochistani has been given a chance for foreign postings which has come as a major setback for the bankers of Balochistan.

“We are surprised that the government is endlessly talking about packages and eliminating the Baloch sense of underrepresentation but we see there is a lack of trust for the Balochs by the government which refuses to give key promotions  and postings to Balochs as well,” a Quetta-based banker told Balochhal on the request of anonymity.

He said all Baloch officials were very discouraged in the wake of complete disregard by the government to the country’s largest province.  If bankers from other provinces are encouraged to work internationally then the Baloch bankers view it as sheer “discrimination” to be ignored for such important postings.

“There is no shortage of qualified Baloch bankers. It is simply a lack of attention to the Balochs that has deprived us the opportunity to serve on international assignments. If the Baloch bankers are incompetent then how come they are heading major branch offices of the National Bank in different districts of Balochistan?” asked another banker.

A group of bankers from Balochistan told the Balochhal that they wanted President Asif Ali Zardari to take notice of this issue and find out why 20 officers posted internationally did not include a single Baloch. They said if the Balochs remained so regularly discriminated, their sense of alienation and underrepresentation would further increase.