Victor Turner

Who is Victor Turner?

Sir Victor Alfred Charles Turner, CSI, CIE, MBE, SI was an English-Pakistani civil service officer, statistician and economist, and one of the founding fathers of the civil service of Pakistan, serving as the first Finance secretary of Pakistan in the government of Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan, as well as Chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue from August 14, 1947 until February 1, 1950.

Alfred Charles Turner – in 1947, when he was knighted, he added the name ‘Victor’ – was born at 36, Campden Street, Kensington, England on 12 March 1892 to Walter Charles Turner, a butler, and his wife Annie formerly Searle. His older brothers were Walter Edward Neal Turner, born 1886, and Robert Henry Turner, born 1889. Alfred’s early education was at St Mary Abbots Higher Grade School, Kensington 1896-1904 and then he attended Latymer Upper School, Hammersmith 1905-1911. In the autumn of 1911 he went up to Emmanuel College, Cambridge on an Open Scholarship to read Mathematics. He gained a ‘First’ in Part 1 of the Maths Tripos in 1912 and in Part 2 was Wrangler in 1914. He was awarded his BA in 1914 and his MA in 1918.