NA Panel Irked Over ‘Unsatisfactory’ Action to Curb Corruption in OPHRD Departments

The National Assembly Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development has expressed concerns over the non-implementation of its recommendations that the panel made earlier to prevent corruption and embezzlement in sub-ordinate departments of the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development (OPHRD).

The committee held its 17th meeting in Parliament Lodges, Islamabad, with Sheikh Fayyaz ud Din in the chair on Friday.

Reviewing progress on compliance with its previous recommendations, the committee noted that the actions taken by the Ministry regarding prevention of corruption, embezzlement, etc. in its sub-ordinate departments were not satisfactory. The Ministry was directed to submit a comprehensive reply, based on actual facts and figures, to the committee prior to its next meeting, scheduled for November in Quetta.

During the course of the meeting, the Secretary Ministry of OPHRD briefed the panel on the efforts made for the welfare of mineworkers. He said the Employees’ Old Age Benefits Institute (EOBI) and the provincials governments were requested, on the directions of the NA committee, to devise a policy to register the mineworkers on the basis of the quantity of production, in addition to initiating proper legislation for their betterment. He said the Ministry had already submitted a draft policy regarding registration of mines and mineworkers on a tonnage/production basis in compliance with the recommendations of the committee.

Unsatisfied with the briefing, the committee directed the Ministry to come up with complete details and briefing in the next meeting.

On the issue of Guli Rozi, wife of Ghulam Durrani, who has been stuck in China since 2016, the Director-General (China), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, informed the committee that the Chinese authorities were contacted. He said Guli Rozi did not want to come back to Pakistan and had decided, on her own, to get settled over there. He added that the department concerned of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would approach her. Any further details will be submitted in the next meeting, he concluded.

The meeting was attended by Members of National Assembly, Shahid Ahmad, Sajid Khan, Zulfiqar Ali Khan Dullah, Haji Imtiaz Ahmed Choudhary, Atta Ullah, Sobia Kamal Khan, Tashfeen Safdar, Syed Javed Hasnain, Zahra Wadood Fatemi, Syed Abrar Ali Shah, Dr. Mahreen Razzaq Bhutto, Muhammad Jamal Ud Din, besides senior officers from the Ministry of OPHRD, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Overseas Pakistanis Foundation, Bureau of Emigration & Overseas Employment, EOBI, and Workers Welfare Fund.