KARACHI:
The senior citizen bill has been gathering dust in the National and Sindh assemblies as the lawmakers have yet to spring into action.
The bill in the National Assembly has been pending since 2007 while the provincial one has been pending for the last one year. The provincial bill promised better facilities and a safe future to people who are over the age of 65 years and belong to lower-middle class and poor families. “The developed countries have gone an extra mile to provide relief to senior citizens,” said Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) MPA Syed Khalid Ahmed. “But we have yet to make the law.”
This has resulted in depriving the elderly people of their basic rights, said Ahmed, who submitted the bill in the provincial assembly in May, 2013. In every session since then, the MPA tried to divert the speaker’s attention to this pending bill.
According to statistics released by the federal government, 11.6 million people, or seven per cent of the total population of Pakistan, are over 60 years old. This figure is expected to rise to 43.3 million by 2050.
Ahmed claimed that he has requested the Sindh Assembly speaker Agha Siraj Durrani and the parliamentary affairs minister Dr Sikandar Mandhro to give permission to introduce the bill but to no avail.
For his part, Dr Mandhro said that there are certain procedures that must be followed before laying the bill in the assembly and these procedures take time. “This draft bill has many errors that must be corrected,” he said. “We are not against any legislation but it [legislation] should be done in a proper way.”
Features of the bill
The Senior Citizens Welfare Bill, 2013, suggested establishing a council for welfare of senior citizens. The social welfare minister will be its chairperson while the secretaries of the social welfare, finance, health, education, local government and Zakat departments will be members. Meanwhile, two representatives from non-governmental organisations and two members of the provincial assembly will be nominated as council members to raise funds and donations from other sources.
“After the law is passed, NADRA will issue special ID cards to senior citizens,” said Ahmed. “This card called ‘Freedom Card’ will entitle elderly people to avail special facilities.” Ahmed explained the card will ensure the settlement of all retirement benefits, such as pensions, before reaching the date of superannuation.
The bill will also provide special counters at pension receiving booths, set up separate wards with free medical treatment at public hospitals, provide free entry in public parks, museums, zoos, cinemas, theatres, public libraries and other related places, have special counters to be established in banks, post offices, PIA, railways and other places. The bill has also suggested providing concession in fares.
Apart from this, the government will establish ‘geriatric care facilities’ in all district-level hospitals in the province. “Senior citizens day care centres will be set up to provide to their physical, mental and recreational needs,” stated the law. “No taxes shall be charged by any department, bank or institution on incomes and profits earned by senior citizens.”
The government will also prepare a policy for the welfare of the elderly, enshrining the Islamic principle of ‘adl’ and ‘ahsan’ to enable them to live with security and dignity. This policy will be formulated after consulting various stakeholders, such as NGOs and members of the social welfare department. “The council may execute a memorandum of understanding with the ministry of zakat and Baitul Maal to provide money for medical treatment and other financial assistance to the elderly people,” the law said.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 5th, 2014.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ