ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator and former Senate chairman, Mian Raza Rabbani has said that transferring of Employees Old Age Benefits Institution (EOBI) funds to the Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal (PBM) and Ministry of Climate Change (MoCC) is a criminal breach of trust by the federal government.
In a statement issued here on Friday, Rabbani pointed out that the EOBI has been devolved to the provinces under the constitutional 18th Amendment Act, 2010. The activities governed by, and pertaining to the EOBI came under the ambit of item 26 of the Concurrent List in the Fourth Schedule, Constitution 1973. The Concurrent List has been omitted.
He said that the federal government in defiance of the 18th Amendment’s decision and the Implementation Commission formed under clause 9 of Article 270AA, Constitution 1973, continues to retain EOBI while denying provinces their rights.
The PPP senator said that the federal finance secretary has admitted before the Supreme Court (SC) that the EOBI funds were transferred to the PBM and MoCC.
Raza Rabbani further said that an amount of approximately Rs 3 billion has been illegally transferred from the EOBI to other federal government divisions/departments. The EOBI essentially caters to the welfare of workers and pays them a pension at a rate of Rs 5250 per month.
“This callous attitude of the federal government of denying the workers their monthly pension reflects the policy of the government to give protection and announce amnesty schemes for big business while depriving the working class of their meagre pension”, lamented Rabbani and condemned this act of the federal government.