NA panel examines performance of PM’s public affairs, grievance wing

ISLAMABAD: The Prime Minister’s Public Affairs and Grievance Wing came under a pointed scrutiny on Tuesday after claiming a 92 percent “disposal rate” of complaints, a figure some lawmakers suggested may say more about paperwork than public relief.

The national Assembly’s Standing Committee on Parliamentary Affairs, chaired by Rana Iradat Sharif Khan, examined the wing’s performance, which processes citizen grievances through platforms including the Pakistan Citizens’ Portal.

In a briefing to the committee, officials said that 18,590 complaints were received between July 1, 2025, and June 24, 2026, of which 17,104 were marked as disposed of.

However, several committee members were not convinced, questioning whether “disposal” actually meant resolution or merely closure on file. They said that the impressive clearance rate could be misleading if complaints were being shut without meaningful redress.

The committee was also informed that complaints had increased from 17,975 in the previous year to 18,590 this year.

Officials linked the rise to expanded outreach, awareness campaigns and greater public familiarity with digital reporting platforms.

However, some members pushed back again, arguing that rising complaint numbers could just as easily signal persistent governance failures and service delivery gaps, not just improved access or awareness.

Briefings also highlighted the rollout of a dedicated short code 1733 for complaint registration, alongside nationwide awareness drives to broaden outreach.

Officials further pointed to special grievance desks set up in flood affected districts of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the 2025 monsoon season to handle compensation and rehabilitation related claims.

Despite these measures, the opposing lawmakers stressed that access without accountability was meaningless. They demanded clearer breakdowns of how many “disposed” cases actually resulted in tangible relief and how many were closed on procedural or administrative grounds.

The committee chairman noted that while the rising volume of resolved cases reflected administrative activity, the real benchmark was whether citizens actually felt the difference.

He urged officials to shift focus from numerical performance to outcome based delivery.

The committee is expected to seek more detailed, disaggregated data in its next session, particularly on complaint categories and the quality of resolutions delivered.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026