NA panel lauds performance of EOBI

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development lauded the efforts of the Employees’ Old-Age Benefits Institution (EOBI) for resolving over two thousand disputed cases.

The committee meeting, chaired by Syed Rafiullah MNA, reviewed the implementation of previous directives and received updates from the EOBI, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), and the Ministry of Interior. It appreciated that 2,416 pension cases have been settled following the panel’s oversight, but it emphasised that partial progress is insufficient: every remaining claim must be concluded promptly and transparently.

On the EOBI matters the committee directed the Board to finalise the outstanding 745 pension claims and provide a full, line-by-line register of pending and settled cases; advertise and conclude the appointment of a regular chairman before the next sitting (and, if not completed, the Secretary Establishment Division will be summoned to explain the delay); and submit compliance reports for regional offices (notably Sargodha and D I Khan) with registration statistics, service-delivery metrics and remedial actions.

Other directives issued by the Committee included the matter of alleged irregular utilisation of workers’ hard-earned contributions by one of its former Chairmen. It was alleged that an amount of approximately Rs 2.4 million was drawn from workers’ funds and utilised to obtain memberships of the DHA Golf Club, Karachi, and the Islamabad Club.

The committee was informed that the matter is currently under litigation; however, it directed that the case be pursued on an urgent basis to ensure recovery of the misused funds and accountability in accordance with the law. The committee also sought a consolidated five-year status report on its recommendations for institutional reforms, an actuarial note on extending EOBI coverage to informal workers (notably fishermen), and instructed EOBI to provide financial reconciliation for recoveries from former officials where applicable.

On trafficking and migration controls, the FIA briefed the committee on ongoing inquiries into illegal migration routes to Cambodia and related trafficking networks. The panel noted arrests and prosecutions but recorded concern at information gaps originating from overseas missions and the need for improved cross-agency collaboration.

The NA body directed the FIA to furnish a consolidated, evidence-based dossier on Cambodia cases and to submit revised off-loading rules and the new risk-analysis protocol designed to identify high-risk passengers in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Interior. The committee decided to consider these matters in an in-camera session.

Recognising potential fiduciary exposure and opaque asset management, the NA panel established a four-member sub-committee to scrutinise the EOBI’s asset, investment portfolio, rental income streams, and real-estate holdings. The sub-committee comprises Dr Mehreen Razzaq Bhutto, Farhan Chishti, Muhammad Ilyas Choudhary, and Fateh Ullah.

The meeting was attended by MNAs Nasir Iqbal Bosal, Zulfiqar Ali Bhatti, Erum Hamid, Mah Jabeen Khan Abbasi (joined virtually), Fateh Ullah Khan, Zulfiqar Ali Behn, Dr Mehreen Razzaq Bhutto, Farhan Chishti, Sofia Saeed Shah, and Muhammad Ilyas Choudhary, along with officers of the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025