The Senate Special Oversight Committee on Tuesday discussed the matter of overlapping jurisdiction between the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
The committee which met under its Chairman Javed Abbasi at the Parliament House was presented an interim report by the Law Ministry over the matter after consultations with senior NAB and FIA officials.
The Senate body was informed by representatives of the Law Division that both the FIA and NAB had expressed concern over the existing jurisdiction the two organisations were exercising.
Through the report, the meeting was apprised that the FIA and NAB were working smoothly and whenever any need arose, the FIA referred cases to the NAB and vice versa.
When representatives of the Law Division told the Senate body that it (Law Division) could not amend the FIA act as it came under the Interior Ministry, Senator Farooq H Naek suggested that a special committee was constituted in order to repeal, amend or alter the existing NAB ordinance and FIA act.
The committee should review in detail the existing law and bifurcate the jurisdiction between the FIA and NAB to eliminate overlapping, added Naek.
The committee chairman, Javed Abbasi, seconded Naek’s suggestion, and directed the Law Division to come up with a comprehensive report in the next meeting so that steps could be taken to determine the jurisdiction and mandate of both the FIA and NAB.
Meanwhile, the Establishment Division secretary gave the meeting a detailed insight into the under-consideration Civil Services reforms. He told the committee that a number of reforms regarding declaration of assets by civil servants, conduct rules, increase in age qualification, women and minority quota of CSS were being considered and a report would be presented to the committee once it was finalised.
Later, officers of the Ministry of Climate Change briefed the Senate committee regarding the functioning of the ministry. The committee was told that the ministry had 195 officers and officials and had jurisdiction within Islamabad after the 18th amendment. It was also informed that 33 per cent of ministerial documentation was done through e-filing and measures to increase the percentage were under process as well.
Among others the committee meeting was attended by Senator Saeed Ghani, Senator Saifullah Magsi and Senator Zahida Khan.
