LAHORE: Provinces are giving a final shape to the reports of their working groups for the 9th National Finance Commission award in the light of consensus proposals and plan to submit them to the federal government by Sept 30.

“The recommendations of the provinces will be included in the documents to be sent to the Centre. A request has been made to the federal government to call the 9th NFC award meeting without any delay as the working groups of the provinces have completed the task assigned to them,” Punjab Finance Minister Dr Ayesha Ghaus Pasha said on Tuesday while speaking at a press conference at the conclusion of a two-day consultative meeting of the working groups set up under the NFC award.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Finance Minister Syed Muzaffar Said, NFC members Mohammad Ibrahim Khan, Qaisar Bangali and Naveed Ahsan, federal joint secretary of finance Syed Anwarul Hassan and finance secretaries of the four provinces were present on the occasion.

NFC award can’t be put off due to delay in population census, says Punjab finance minister

Dr Ayesha said there was a need to clearly define powers of the federation and the provinces after the 18th constitutional amendment to avoid problems like double taxation.

She said the participants of the consultative session on the reports of the working groups not only agreed with each other’s proposals, but the issues pending because of lack of mutual consultation had also been resolved.

She was of the opinion that it would have been the best award if given after the population census, but “we cannot delay the NFC award due to delay in population census as the award itself is an important thing and a lifeline for provinces’ social sector development projects”.

Asked if Punjab would continue to give its two per cent share from the next award to Balochistan like it did in the 7th NFC award for being less developed province and to remove a sense of deprivation among its people, Dr Ayesha said it was too early to say anything on the matter. “Once the important 9th NFC award meeting starts we shall see what to sacrifice.”

KP Finance Minister Muzaffar Said stressed the need for collectively working for national solidarity, peace and democracy. He said all the provinces had fulfilled their responsibilities towards the award and expressed the hope that the federal government would soon convene a meeting of the NFC award.

NFC member from Balochistan Qaisar Bangali told reporters that the consultative session had provided them an opportunity to explain the factors behind their demands and expressed the hope that there would be the same spirit of unity and understanding among the members after the 9th NFC award meeting.

Sindh Finance Secretary Hassan Naqvi said that during the session a number of decisions had been taken by the provinces with consensus while the difference of opinion on some points was a healthy sign.

Non-statuary NFC member from KP Ibrahim Khan called upon the federal government to submit reports of its working groups at the earliest so that the provinces could believe that the federation was serious about early distribution of the NFC award. He regretted that the Centre had not shared its working paper with the stakeholders. The federal government was also not holding quarterly review meetings of the NFC award despite demanded by the provinces, he said.

Joint finance secretary Anwarul Hassan said the purpose of the meeting of the working groups was to make progress on the NFC award and the federal government was taking this matter very seriously. He said the Centre would share its working paper with the stakeholders during this month, adding that the federation was seriously working on the 9th NFC award.

Earlier, the third working group led by KP presented its report giving an estimate of expenditures of the federation and the provinces over the next five years.

There was a consensus among the members that the estimate of expenditures should be made in the light of responsibilities devolved to the provinces after the 18th amendment.

Published in Dawn September 7th, 2016