ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan is reportedly annoyed at being deliberately misguided by his cabinet colleagues and non-ompliance of his directives by various ministries and organizations.
This was gauged from available official documents, background interviews and actions which include amendments to the Companies Ordinance, U-turn on some decisions, including withdrawal of notifications of Chairman Karachi Port Trust (KPT), Jameel Akhtar, Mayor, Islamabad, Sheikh Ansar Aziz and former Chairman SECP Board, Khalid Mirza.
Informed sources told this newspaper that the Prime Minister is disappointed by governor State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Dr. Reza Baqir's purported failure to lower the discount rate to 7 percent, a step that he had ostensibly pledged to take during a briefing.
The replacement of Chairperson, Federal Board of Revenue, Nausheen Amjad, with someone from the private sector or a retired bureaucrat is also on the cards.
Tariq Bajwa, former Governor SBP and Dr. Waqar Masood, former Secretary Finance, were seen in different budget-related meetings held under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister, fuelling speculation that they may replace some members of the economic team.
Sources said that at a recent meeting of federal cabinet, Prime Minister Imran Khan while referring to the incentive package given to construction sector, expressed his concern that FBR was not being helpful in its full implementation; and directed removing all hurdles in this regard. He further stated that despite the lack of fiscal space, a substantial allocation to Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) had been made for infrastructure projects on Public Private Partnership basis which would provide the necessary impetus to the construction industry. The Cabinet emphasized the need for taking stock of FBR actions which could potentially create bottlenecks for some sectors, such as construction industry, and stifle future growth.
In the same meeting, the Prime Minister expressed disappointment at sabotaging the Cabinet's decision to transfer federal government hospitals in Karachi and Lahore to provinces by delaying the filing of review petition. The decision to transfer these hospitals/ institutes was motivated by the fact that with health being a devolved subject, federal government did not have enough resources to effectively manage these entities.
The Prime Minister directed the constitution of a committee comprising advisor to prime minister for parliamentary affairs, Attorney General of Pakistan and Secretary National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination to recommend a way forward regarding transfer of four hospitals to provinces, keeping in view the court's decision within 15 days.
Informed sources said that the committee held a meeting with the Prime Minister on Saturday and suggested some measures in this regard.
On May 19, 2020, while drawing attention to the criticism in the media on certain amendments in the Companies Act, 2017 recently carried out through an Ordinance, Prime Minister Khan questioned as to how these amendments could escape scrutiny of various fora.
"The amendment in section 172, which allows a person who has entered into plea bargain with NAB to become a director of the company, is against the ethos of transparency and accountability. Similarly, any amendment in section 186/187 has stripped the government of its powers to appoint CEO of a public sector company even if it is a majority shareholder which is quite illogical," the sources quoted the Prime Minister as saying in the Cabinet meeting.
The Cabinet was apprised that amendment in Section 452, exempting the disclosure of less than 10% shares in a foreign company, was also against the principle of transparency. It was emphasized that the primary objective of these amendments was to complement efforts towards Ease of Doing Business but apparently many other 'questionable' amendments have been made under this pretext.
According to sources, it was brought to the notice of the meeting that out of 121 amendments only 17 related to Ease of Doing Business. It was also disclosed that Board of Investment (BoI) which deals with the subject of Ease of Doing Business argued that it sponsored only 14 amendments. It was noted that undue haste precluded any legitimate and meaningful scrutiny due to the paucity of time which resulted in these objectionable amendments.
The Cabinet was also informed that on April 27, 2020 the Cabinet Committee for Disposal of Legislative Cases (CCLC) headed by Minister for Law and Justice approved the amendments which were ratified by the Cabinet on April 28, and on April 29 it was submitted to the President. The amendments came into effect on April 30, 2020.
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