Tourism corporation to remain with provinces

Cabinet body rejects proposal of centre to take PTDC back from the province

ISLAMABAD: The Cabinet Committee on Restructuring has turned down a request of the Cabinet Division for taking the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) back from provinces in the wake of a legal battle over assets of the tourism company, officials say.

The cabinet committee’s decision came after the minister of law and justice stated in a meeting held earlier this month that tourism was an area that had been devolved to provinces in line with the 18th Constitutional Amendment and any change would need another constitutional amendment.

The committee noted that the PTDC was being governed under the Companies Ordinance 1984 as a public corporation.

According to officials, the Cabinet Division earlier told the committee that PM Nawaz Sharif during a visit to the Tarbela Dam in February 2014 insisted that the PTDC was not required to be handed over to the provinces. He said various aspects of the PTDC’s devolution process needed to be reviewed in order to keep the corporation as a corporate entity at the federal level. He directed his secretary to engage in legal consultation with the inter-provincial coordination secretary, law secretary.

Accordingly, a meeting was held in March 2014 in the PM’s Office. It was agreed after comprehensive deliberations that there was enough legal space for the PTDC to continue to run as a corporate entity with minor amendments to its Memorandum and Articles of Association through a resolution of the board of directors.

It was recommended that the PTDC may continue to function as a federal corporate entity and manage its assets and facilities through public-private partnerships so as to turn the company into a self-sustaining organisation.

Consequently, the PM’s Office, in consultation with the Law, Justice and Human Rights Division, desired to place the matter before the Cabinet Committee on Restructuring for consideration in an attempt to keep the PTDC as a federal corporate entity while not disturbing the 18th Amendment at the same time.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 26^th, 2016.

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