Ministry seeks record of CCI deliberations: CCI urged to resolve constitutional/devolution status of WWF

ISLAMABAD: The Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development (HRD) has urged the Council of Common Interests (CCI) to urgently resolve the constitutional/devolution status of the Workers Welfare Fund (WWF) and directed the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis & Human Resource Development to furnish a chronological record of the CCI deliberations.

The committee’s meeting, chaired by MNA Syed Rafiullah, was held here on Friday to consider a comprehensive briefing on the current status of the WWF.

Members recorded appreciation for the breadth of WWF activity set out in the presentation — in particular the Fund’s stated housing, education, health and grant programmes — but expressed serious reservations about gaps between the presentation and on-the-ground delivery.

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The Ministry confirmed that collections have increased substantially in recent years and outlined the Fund’s investment and disbursement profile; yet the Committee underlined that headline figures must be validated through audited accounts and ledger reconciliations before being accepted.

On constitutional and inter-governmental matters, the Committee noted conflicting arrangements arising from post-18th Amendment devolution. The Ministry explained that trans-national collections remain federal while provincially-based collections are now being handled by the provincial Workers Welfare Boards, and that several matters remain pending before the CCI.

The Committee concluded that a definitive political and administrative decision is now necessary: it formally asked that CCI must be convened to resolve the outstanding legal and operational questions affecting the Fund and directed the Ministry to provide a full record of CCI discussions and any legal opinions.

Project delivery and beneficiary integrity were the principal operational concerns. WWF was told to produce full dossiers for major projects — with immediate emphasis on the Zone-V housing scheme described as “ready for allotment” — and to provide documentary evidence of allotments, beneficiary lists and any disciplinary or legal action taken in relation to procedural irregularities.

Rafiullah punctuated the session with a pointed demand for institutional integrity: “If your hospitals are so good, why do WWF board members go to private hospitals such as Shifa?” The remark was taken as emblematic of the Committee’s insistence that documented claims of public benefit must match reality on the ground.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025