Fact-check: Did chairman WAPDA order his picture to be placed next to Pakistan's founder?
The notification is authentic, however WAPDA says offices were not required to place the pictures together
Updated Tuesday Mar 21 2023
Multiple social media users allege that the state-run water utility authority has ordered its employees to display a picture of its chairman alongside that of Quaid-e-Azam, the founder of Pakistan.
The claim is misleading.
Claim
On March 11, Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan tweeted from his verified Twitter account: “This is the retired Lieutenant General Sajjad Ghani, who has issued an order to display his picture alongside the picture of Quaid in all the offices of the WAPDA.”
“Sir, Quaid made Pakistan,” Khan further wrote, “Could you tell us about your achievements?”
The tweet has been retweeted nearly 3,000 times.
A similar claim was shared by another Twitter user.
Fact
The Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), a federally-owned authority responsible for the maintenance of water and power in Pakistan, did indeed issue a notification on February 14, directing its offices to display portraits of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Lt Gen Sajjad Ghani, the chairman of WAPDA.
“The portraits will be displayed at your project/office/institutions at an appropriate place,” the notification reads. The veracity of the notification has been confirmed by WAPDA.
However, Muhammad Abid Rana, the additional director general of public relations of WAPDA, told Geo Fact Check that the order was not to display the pictures together.
“In the notification, it is written to put them [the portraits] up at an appropriate place,” he said, over the phone, “It is not written to put them together.”
An official at the Hydro-Electric Power Station Mangla also confirmed that the notification had indeed been issued.
However, on March 10, the notification was withdrawn, as per a copy available with Geo Fact Check.
The letter states that the notification dated February 14 is hereby withdrawn. It further adds that the portrait of the Quaid e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah “should be displayed at the most prominent location/ site of your project/ office/ institution” with no mention of the photo of the chairman of WAPDA.
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