Body on religious affairs wants Zakat system revamped

* NA and Senate committees say Zakat distribution needs proper monitoring

Staff Report

ISLAMABAD: Pir Muhammad Shah Khagga, chairman of the National Assembly’s standing committee on religious affairs, on Wednesday expressed concern over mismanagement and corruption in the Zakat disbursement system and urged the provincial Zakat ministers to initiate a strict monitoring system to eradicate corruption out of the system.

Khagga said this while chairing a joint meeting of the standing committees of the National Assembly and Senate on religious affairs, zakat and ushr, a press release stated.

The committee members discussed the existing Zakat disbursement system. They proposed revamping the entire Zakat distribution system to end financial and management irregularities. They said the Zakat system introduced in 1980 was comprehensive but it had failed to achieve its goals due to mismanagement, lack of proper and regular monitoring, evaluation and surveillance system. Khagga asked the Religious Affairs Ministry to exercise its supervisory role and monitor the formation of Zakat councils to help the needy people.

The committee members stressed that it was important to restructure the provincial Zakat councils. They proposed that members of the national and provincial assemblies, philanthropists and retired civil servants of good reputation be included in the councils.

Khagga agreed to the proposal and formed an eight-member sub-committee with four members each from the Senate and the National Assembly. Headed by Khagga, the sub-committee would deliberate on the proposals of the committee members and suggest remedial measures.

The meeting was attended by Federal Religious Affairs Minister Ijazul Haq, Maulana Samiul Haq, chairman of Senate’s standing committee on religious affairs, MNAs Ahmed Raza Maneka, Saeed Ahmad, Maulvi Noor Muhammad, Shahida Akhtar Ali, Zammurd Khan, Pir Aftab Hussain Shah Jilani, and senators Khalid Ranjha, Abdul Latif Ansari, Muhammad Abbas Komaili, Maulvi Agha Muhammad, Syed Hidayatullah Shah, and the provincial zakat ministers of Punjab, Balochistan, and Sindh.

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