Taha Aziz Magrabi Quits as USC Managing Director

Utility Stores Corporation (USC) Managing Director (MD) Taha Aziz Magrabi has resigned, citing personal reasons for his decision. He had recently been reappointed for a period of three years. He tendered his resignation to Minister for Industries and Production Makhdoom Syed Murtaza Mehmood. Sources in the Ministry of Industries and Production disclosed that the MD USC left for Karachi after tendering his resignation. Minister for Industries and Production confirmed the resignation but said that it has not been accepted. He said that Magrabi will continue to run the daily affairs of the USC from Karachi until a new MD is appointed. The USC, which runs over 4,000 stores all across the country, provides subsidized commodities, including wheat flour, pulses, cooking oil, ghee, and sugar. It had recently announced an increase of Rs. 180 for a 20 kg bag of flour, which was immediately withdrawn by the government. Sources say that the new Point of Sale (POS) software deployed by USC had been causing difficulties for customers during transactions, and the Minister and the Secretary of the Ministry of Industries and Production were dissatisfied with his performance.