Sindh PA passes 5 bills to pave way for meeting FATF's legal specifications

KARACHI: The Sindh Assembly on Friday passed five important bills into law to pave path for meeting the FATF's legal specifications and end money laundering. Bills included: The Sindh Seized and Freezed Facilities (Hospitals, Dispensaries) Bill, 2020, The Sindh Seized and Freezed Institutions (Madrasahs, Schools) Bill, 2020, The Sindh Trust Bill 2020, The Sindh Co-Operative Societies Bill, 2020, and The Sindh Wqaf Properties Bill 2020.

These bills were tabled by Sindh Energy Minister Imtiaz Shaikh, treasury's Ikram Ullah Dharejo and Sindh Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mukesh Kumar Chawla. "The legislations are related to the FATF," Dharejo said and added that the Trusts being used for money laundering will be stopped by this bill.

Similarly, he said that bill of Co-Operative Societies will have a check on sales and purchase of the societies so that the money acquired through such deals could not be used in terrorism or money laundering. And the government could also exchange information with the concerned institutions, Dharejo said. PPP's Sohail Anwar Siyal said that the FATF had demanded of the government to ensure that its administered properties of auqaf should never be used for wrong means. The legislations will also help end illegal use of the auqaf earnings.

MQM's Khawaja Izhar-ul-Hasan said that the government should make rules of the passed bills. Opposition leader, Firdous Shamim Naqvi, of the PTI, complained that the treasury carried out legislations in haste and did not let the opposition to go through the bills.

Similarly, MQM's Muhammad Hussain placed a similar complaint to the chair. "It is about the respect of our nation and should be in a respectable manner," Naqvi told the house. Earlier, MQM and PTI staged a noisy protest in the house on formation of the Keamari District and walked out. However latter joined the session. The house stands adjourned till Monday 2pm.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020