The Ministry of Labour and Manpower Workers Welfare Fund's (WWF) officials informed the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that the Finance Ministry has deprived the Fund of Rs 87.434 billion, allocated for development projects to bridge the budget deficit gap.
The PAC met at Parliament House on Monday with Acting Chairperson Yasmeen Rehman in the chair, which reviewed the audit paras of the Ministry of Labour and Manpower. The acting chairperson taking serious note of the absence of the secretary labour and manpower from the committee meeting said that stern action should be taken against the bureaucrats who are not showing any regard to Parliamentary committee.
However, the secretary, who turned up late, on his arrival tendered apology for late coming and informed the committee that he was not informed about the PAC meeting well in time. He assured the committee that he would hold inquiry and take the responsible persons to task.
The PAC expressed displeasure on no release of funds to the WWF of the ministry of labour and manpower and directed the ministry of finance to submit a detailed report to the committee. The committee also directed the ministry of finance to give report as why the profit of the WWF fund deposits is not being paid to the Fund. The PAC directed the WWF to submit a detailed report of the development projects and the funds/expenditures of the WWF to the committee within a week. The Committee also directed the WWF officials to submit details of the incomplete housing schemes run by WWF to the committee within a week.
The PAC also expressed reservations on donation of Rs one billion of the WWF to Prime Minister's Flood Relief Fund and directed the authorities to hold inquiry into the matter and submit its report within a week along with the detailed expenditures of last three years.
The officials of the WWF informed the committee that Rs 126 billion grant was approved for the WWF in the budget, but the Ministry of Finance has released only Rs 39.335 billion out of the total amount, while the remaining amount of Rs 87.434 billion is being used to meet the budget deficit. The WWF officials also informed the Committee that the Ministry of Finance has also not paid Rs 84 billion profit earned on the deposits of the Fund to the authorities.
They said that Finance Ministry is bridging the financial deficit gap by using the remaining WWF amount, but it has badly affected the ongoing development projects of the Ministry. The Committee was also informed that under the 18th Constitutional Amendment, the WWF is being devolved to provinces and except Sindh province, Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa would be badly affected with the Fund devolution. The WWF officials informed the Committee that almost all the development projects under WWF will come to standstill if the Fund was devolved to provinces.
While giving details of the performance of the WWF to the PAC, the officials said that the WWF is spending the money released by Ministry of Finance on different workers welfare projects round the country. They informed the Committee that the WWF has, so far, completed 114 housing projects for the workers all over Pakistan, which have benefited over 60,000 workers. They said that 22 housing projects are going on under the WWF.
The WWF has completed the construction of 117 educational institutions, which are operative and more than 66,000 children of workers are getting education in the institutions. They said that construction of five other educational institutions is under way. Giving details of the health sector projects of the WWF, the officials informed the PAC that the Fund has completed 84 projects regarding the health sector across the country, benefiting over 1.252 million workers and their families.
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