December 14, 2012

3rd PAT Annual General Meeting held on December 14, 2012

The Third Annual General Body Meeting of Publican Alumni Trust for the year ended June 30, 2012, was held on Friday, December 14, 2012 at the Services Mess, Karachi. A report on the meeting is given below.

Photographs of the Annual General Meeting can be viewed by clicking the thumbnails below.

PAT Board Members Present:

Admiral (Retd) Shahid Karimullah, Khawaja Fariduddin, Shamim Riaz, Waseem Ghani, Sabiha Pervaiz, Nudrat Ara Alvi, Hassan Madni, Chaudhry Arshad Iqbal, Nighat Mir, Azhar Hussain, Khalid Zaki, Hamid Jaleel Zubairi, Tariq Bin Usman Siddiqui,

PAT founder Chairman:

Javed Jabbar,

PAT Members:

Humayun Qureshi, Quaid Johar Haider, Dr. Raza Gardezi, Hamid Jamal Zubairi, Zafar A. Khan, Syed Ayaz Mehmood,

PAT accountant:

Shahid Kaleem.

Absent with Notification:

Hussain Jamil, & Shirley Vallika.

1. The AGM which was scheduled to commence at 6 pm had to be delayed due to traffic jams in Karachi where several of our members were stuck. After a 20-30 minute delay it was decided to serve refreshment and tea to allow member stuck in traffic to reach the Services Mess. The meeting commenced at 7 pm and by that time the required Quorum was also completed as per rules.

2. Meeting started at 7PM with the recitation of Holy Quran by Adm. ® Azhar Hussain. Before the Chairman's address, one minute silence was observed in the memory of those Publicans who have passed away during the year. Later minutes of last AGM held on 16-12-2011 were proposed by Ms. Nighat Mir & Seconded by Mr. Zafar A. Khan. Minutes of AGM were recorded as approved.

3. Chairman PAT Admiral (Retd.) Shahid Karimullah was requested by the Secretary to deliver his welcome address. In his welcome address the Chairman thanked Founder Chairman, all Board members, members of PAT for taking out the time to attend the AGM. Chairman offered his appreciation of dedication of all Board members for their support and for attending the meetings. Chairman then went thru the summary of efforts made to get the MOU signed by 5 Corps office in Karachi. He praised the support he got from Mr. Javed Jabbar who accompanied him to meetings with 5 Corps in HQ. Due to negative and one sided mind by GHQ it was not possible to hand over control of PAT to the Ministry of Defence, their condition of control over PAT funds and activities, it was debated in more than one Board meeting where unanimous resolution of not signing the MOU as proposed by GHQ was adopted. Chairman also circulated a brief on our website to obtain comments of Publicans.

4. PAT's Secretary briefed the AGM regarding the activities conducted during the year. He explained the formation of a subcommittee from the BOT's consisting of Ms. Sabiha Parvez, Adm Azhar Hussain & Zaffar A. Khan to start looking at options available for PAT in case agreement with Ministry of Defence is not reached. The committee studied various schools in Bastis and Katchi Abadis and picked out two schools for detailed review. The committee members visited these two schools in Azam Basti in Phase 1 and Purani Numaish area near Quaid's mausoleum. The committee also reviewed the major NGO's like TCF, SOS etc. It was felt that PAT will not have any active role to play if we join hands with bigger NGO's. Some of our members of Board were very keen to retain active involvement with our old school for which options of giving scholarship to deserving students who complete their education in FG schools is still on table. Another option of award of scholarship to needy and deserving young boys and girls for Vocational Training institute is also under active review. The Secretary also tried to clear perception amongst Publicans that senior class of 60"s is dominating the Board of PAT. In this context the procedure to become a PAT trustee from membership to Advisory group role was clearly outlined. PAT is always looking for induction of younger blood; in fact more than 50% of PAT is from classes of mid-late 60's and early seventies. The importance of increasing PAT membership was also highlighted in Secretary's address besides the importance of donations from within Publicans and from external sources. The Secretary thanked all members of Board, members who contributed to PAT funds and major donors like Bank Al Falah for their support for last 3 years in scholarships to the students of FG schools.

5. The treasurer presented the accounts for the year ended June 30, 2012 which were already reviewed by the Audit Committee of the PAT Board and signed by the auditors M/s. Hyder Bhimji & Co. Chartered Accountants. The treasurer highlighted the growth of 25% in the General Fund which now stands at 4.078 million rupees. While showing the balance sheet it was informed that investments of PAT are now 3 million rupees. On a quarry from the floor about where these investments are kept it was explained that these are in Government Schemes and different banks. It was further informed that since we are not permitted to invest in Government Schemes any more we will divert the funds to the bank offering highest return. He further showed the profit and loss account highlighting a surplus for the year of 0.815 million rupees. In the end details, of total receipts from donations amounting to 0.897 million rupees, were furnished before the meeting.

6. Q & A session followed the financial report. Mr. Humayon Qureshi (class of 1973) showed a lot interest in expanding the activities of PAT especially on the social front. He wanted to encourage networking and socializing on Platform with events like family get-together, picnics and walks. Chairman and all Board members were of the view that they are in favor of social get together as long they are self financed. Mr. Qureshi volunteered to hold the first social get together himself. He also suggested membership campaign should be undertaken by PAT members of Board and other members.

7. Syed Ayaz Mehmood (Class of 1974) introduced himself and explained that he is using his own resources to have some souvenirs for the reunion. He had made T-Shirts in the 2009 reunion and distributed them free of cost. He is planning to offer Coffee Mugs with Public School logo on it. This was welcome by all the participants.

8. Secretary requested Founder Chairman Mr. Javed Jabbar to present his closing address. In his remarks, the founding chairman shared his views about the unfortunate closure of PAT activities in the 3 successor schools. He said that the irony of particular individuals making a distinct difference in institutional practices is highlighted by the fact that, for its first 2 years of work for the benefit of the 3 schools, PAT received ready and willing co-operation both from the HQ of the Federal Govt. Schools Directorate in Rawalpindi and most of the time, even at the Karachi level. However, with a change of personnel in both places, positive developments were halted by citing outmoded rules. It was deliberately decided not to approach the COAS to avoid creating complications at the operational level for future possibilities of resumed co-operation. He stressed that there was an abundance of other deserving options for potential support from PAT including focusing, if agreed, upon facilitating enrollment of presently out-of-school children into primary schools, as being initiated by a new organization known as Education for Sindh (EFS). He recorded his deep appreciation for the sustained efforts being made by the Chairman, the Secretary and the Board of PAT.

9. The Secretary thanked the participants for attending the AGM and invited all the participants to refreshment in the adjoining room.