ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing committee on Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs on Tuesday expressed concern over the discriminatory behavior of various banks towards members of the parliament regarding opening of bank accounts.
Chairman of the committee Senator Saleem H. Mandviwala said that when the bankers come to know that an applicant was a member of parliament, they readily decline to open the account.
Senator Syed Muzaffar Hussain Shah stressed the need for providing proper education to the bankers about rules and regulations set by State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) regarding requirement of bio-metric verification at time of opening an account.
He said a bank in Karachi refused to open his account merely because his thumb impression was not matching with the system due to his missing thumb impression lines.
On the occasion, a representative of SBP, Syed Irfan Ali informed the committee that there were also alternative means of verification to open an account and said that according to rules and regulations, when the bio-metric verification was not possible due to system failure of NADRA or due to any disability or erasing of thumb lines, the alternative means could be used.
Minister of State for Finance, Rana Muhammad Afzal suggested that the issued could be resolved by amending the account opening form to facilitate the customers of the banks.
The committee recommended that the account opening form should be amended in which two options should be mentioned in this regard.
Regarding calling attention notice moved by Senator Usman Khan Kakar on the 30 promotional posts of Custom Inspectors lying vacant in the Customs Collectorates of Quetta, Usman Kakar said that people of Baluchistan province were being treated discriminately and they were not given promotions.
Representative of Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) however said that they were not doing any discrimination against the Balochistan people but they are bound to follow rules and regulations.
Discussing an agenda item regarding compliance report by ministry of commerce and FBR regarding releasing of more than 10,000 used imported vehicles by the overseas Pakistanis stuck at Karachi port, the committee was informed that out of those 10,000 vehicles, duties of 7000 vehicles had been paid and out of them 2500 vehicles were evacuated.
The committee was informed that the Commerce Ministry had amended paragraph 3(5) of Appendix-E of the Import Policy Order, 2016, whereby conditions of import for vehicles which were in place prior to change had been restored. The meeting was also attended by Senators Ayesha Raza Farooq, Ilyas Ahmed Bilour, Osman Saifullah Khan, and Mohsin Aziz.
