Oil and gas resources, corporate profits: Authorities directed to transfer 50pc share to provinces

A parliamentary panel overseeing the 18th Constitutional Amendment has told federal authorities to hand the provinces their 50 percent share of petroleum resources and profits of state-owned firms immediately, Business Recorder reported. The panel warned that the Auditor General could be asked to withhold and transfer funds directly if its instructions are ignored.

Lawmakers also demanded that provincial employment quotas be applied rigorously in federal offices, state corporations and statutory bodies. Balochistan currently has a single grade 22 officer in the 38 federal divisions. Senate Functional Committee on Devolution chairman Zamir Hussain Ghumro expressed serious concern over the lack of a mechanism in the Petroleum Division and Establishment Division to implement related notifications. Senior officials, including federal secretaries, could face legal proceedings if they do not meet the two-week deadline.

The chairman said that profits from 13 state-owned companies, PPL among them, have allegedly been withheld from the provinces for 16 years. He outlined two acceptable options: giving provinces 50 percent of the resources themselves, or paying them 50 percent of the declared profits once the Auditor General of Pakistan has audited them. The panel also cited fiscal pressure, with federal spending around Rs19 trillion and total tax and non-tax revenue at Rs20 trillion.