Directives regarding TDAP board member: Senate panel to refer MoC’s defiance matter to body

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Commerce on Tuesday unanimously decided to refer the matter of continuous defiance of Senate directives by the Commerce Ministry to the privilege committee with respect to appointment of Senator Bilal Ahmad Khan as Member of TDAP Board.

Presided over by Senator, Anusha Rehman Khan, the committee grilled Commerce Ministry’s team led by the Special Secretary, Shakeel Ahmed Mangnejo for misguiding the committee on the status of TDAP just to avoid appointment of a Parliamentarian on its Board.

Commerce Ministry, in its brief, informed the Committee that draft summary for the Cabinet for nomination of Senator Bilal Ahmed Khan as Member of TDAP Board, in pursuance of Secretariat’s letter of September 10, 2024, was forwarded to Law & Justice Division for views/comments. The opinion of Law & Justice was received. Ministry of Commerce is moving summary to the Cabinet for nomination of Senator Bilal Ahmed Khan as Director on the Board of TDAP.

TDAP Board expired on May 30, 2021 whereas, the Senate Secretariat nominated Senator Faisal Saleem Rahman on the Board of TDAP on August 10, 2021. The Board of TDAP was reconstituted after a period of almost two years on May 22, 2023. Subsequently, in response to the request from TDAP for nomination of members of Standing Committees of National Assembly and Senate on the Board of TDAP on June 5, 2023, Commerce Ministry on July 10, 2023 told TDAP that it falls within the ambit of SOE, Act 2023 in terms of Section (3) of the Act.

The committee chairperson argued that since TDAP has not yet been declared State Owned Enterprise (SOE), there was no hitch in issuance of notification of Senator Bilal Ahmed as Member TDAP Board; and decided to seek opinion of Attorney General for Pakistan.

She further stated that Commerce Ministry does not want oversighting in spending of billions of rupees of Export Development Fund (EDF). Her comments, however, were refuted by the Special Secretary Commerce, saying that there is a proper mechanism for oversight of spending of EFD funds.

Officials of Commerce Ministry, Law Ministry and Finance Ministry tried to explain that in light of recent amendments in Election Act appointing a Parliamentarian as Board Member was allowed. This was endorsed by the representative of Law Ministry.

The Committee, however, was not ready to hear the viewpoint of Commerce Ministry officials, who according to the chairperson, were deliberately flouting instructions of Senate Standing Committee.

The representative of Finance Ministry said that TDAP’s status is a complex issue and can only be decided by the Cabinet Committee on State Owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs).

Senator Salim Mandviwalla maintained that there is no need to further discuss this issue in the Committee and suggested to the Chairperson of the Committee to refer the matter to the Privilege Committee, where the concerned officials will be given proper chance to present their viewpoint.

He maintained that the entire bureaucratic structure of the country needs to be reviewed as irrelevant officials are being deputed in different Ministries. He also cited the example of Senate, where, according to him, hundreds of employees are on deputation.

Trade and Investment Officer (TIO) in Kenya informed the Committee that 1300 containers of Pakistani origin stuck at the port were cleared at zero duty after hectic interaction with the Kenyan Government and duty free import of Pakistani rice was extended till November 2024.

The committee praised the collaboration that has led to the generation of tractors and motorcycles by Kenya from Pakistan, anticipating revenue benefits for the country.

Similarly, the Trade and Investment Attaché from Johannesburg, South Africa, briefed the committee on export potential from Pakistan.

The Chairperson emphasized that the furniture and pharmaceuticals industry associations could play a crucial role in enhancing exports of their products.

The committee thoroughly discussed the country’s export growth and addressed the challenges faced by exporters in competitive markets. It stressed the importance of trade offices in promoting exports and emphasized the need for efficient operation of a commerce portal that provides demand of products in countries for export items from Pakistan.

“The committee unanimously moved a privilege motion against the Ministry of Commerce officials responsible for non-exclusion member Parliament from the TDAP board since 2021, abrogating the law and the Parliament. This issue has persisted on the agenda for several meetings, and after a thorough review of the records of the Commerce ministry, it was revealed that some officials of Ministry of Commerce have consistently excluded the parliamentary members from the TDAP board since 2021, without any legal authority using unsubstantiated excuses,” said Anusha Rehman.

The meeting was attended by Senators Sarmad Ali, Bilal Ahmed Khan, Hamid Khan, Amir Waliuddin Chishti, Saleem Mandviwalla, Zeeshan Khanzada, and Senator Muhammad Tallal Badar. Federal Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan and other senior officials from related departments were also present.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024