PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has failed to issue the notification required for the implementation of the much-trumpeted Prevention of Conflict of Interest Act 2016 even nine months after the law’s passage by the provincial assembly.

Unlike most laws, which come into force soon after their passage by the assembly, the legislation on conflict of interest has a ‘commencing clause’, which suggests the law will become effective only after the government notify the date of its enforcement in the official gazette.

The provincial establishment department has yet to issue such a notification.

Formation of Prevention of Conflict of Interest, Ethics Commission also faces delay

The KP Conflict of Interest Act 2016 was passed on August 5, 2016.

Officials told Dawn that the law was published in official gazette on August 12.

However, no other notification has been issued so far for the law’s implementation.

Another official said as the law had a commencing clause, it was imperative for the government to notify it from a specific date and if that didn’t happen, it won’t come into force.

He also said the government had also failed to frame rules under the Act and the delay in the issuance of notification and formulation of rules was to further delay the formation of the KP Prevention of Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commission.

The law provides for the establishment of a clear conflict of interest and related post-employment principles for public office-holders to prevent and minimise the possibility of conflicts arising between private interests and public duties of public officeholders in the province.

However, the relevant officials said the government had yet to frame rules under the Act, a reason for the delay in the formation of the commission.

An official requesting anonymity told Dawn that the delay in the rules formulation was taken up in a recent meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, who had ordered the early completion of the rule-making process to prevent delay in the execution of the initiative.

He said at least 75 percent work on the framing of rules under various laws had been completed.

About the conflict of interest rules, the official said the rules were framed in March and had been vetted by the law department.

He however said the rules had yet to be notified.

“The government can proceed with the formation of the commission once the rules are notified,” he said.

Section 3(1) of law provides for the commission to implement the provision of the act and says that the government shall by notification in the official gazette establish an independent commission to be known as KP Prevention of Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commission.

Section 3(3) says the commission shall comprise a chairman to be appointed by the government on the recommendation of the selection committee, who shall be eligible to become judge of the high court and two members to be appointed by government on the recommendation of selection committee. One of the members shall have to be a retired civil servant in BS-20 or above and the other member shall be a person having expertise in financial management.

Section 3(4) states that the government shall constitute a selection committee comprising two members, one each from treasury and opposition benches and would be nominated by the speaker and opposition leader respectively to select and recommend a panel of three persons for posts of chairman and members of the commission.

The member of treasury benches will be designated as the chairman of the selection committee.

Under the law, a public office holder includes governor, chief minister, provincial cabinet member, speaker of the assembly, provincial minister, adviser and special assistant to chief minister, while category of government officials has the chief secretary, additional chief secretary, administrative secretaries to the government and special secretaries.

An official at the establishment department told Dawn that the law department had vetted the rules, which awaited the chief minister’s approval.

Despite the proclamation from the PTI leadership, the draft Act remained stuck for nearly two years after it was first introduced at the provincial assembly on November 14, 2014, and referred to a select committee.

The committee sent the bill to the house on August 2015 but it was again sent to the committee for further deliberations.

The bill was placed on the house’s agenda in January 2016 but wasn’t passed due to the lack of quorum. It was sent to the committee for deliberations for the third time.

Both the treasury and opposition benches joined hands and thus, causing the approval of the law after reducing its clauses from 65 to 25.

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2017