Senator Mian Raza Rabbani, Deputy Secretary General, Pakistan Peoples Party here on Saturday said that devolution process which was completed on June 30, 2011, has been done in accordance with the letter and spirit of the 18th Amendment. All entries of the concurrent list, which now stand abolished, have been devolved to the provinces, says a press release issued here.
The functions of seventeen Federal Ministries relatable to the Concurrent List have been devolved to the provinces and these ministries have ceased to exist at Federal level. The additional six ministries which continue to function under the Federal Legislative List Part I and Part II at federal level, but whose certain entries fell within the ambit of the Concurrent list were also devolved to the provinces in the second phase of devolution process.
Only those entries relatable to the Federal Legislative List Part I and Part II of the Constitution remain with the federation. The process which was initiated with the drafting of the Eighteenth Amendment and the implementation of the devolution has been carried out with consensus of not only all political parties present in Parliament but other stakeholders as well.
Even if at this stage there are certain issues on which there is a difference of opinion then these can be settled through mutual consultation and dialogue between the Federal Government and the provinces at any appropriate forum particularly the CCI. This is historic and national achievement of all democratic forces, parliament and the people of Pakistan.