K-P govt adamant on paying honorarium to prayer leaders

Bureaucrats warn of financial implications of project, possibility of pesh-imams demanding regularisation

PESHAWAR: Despite huge financial implications and being strongly opposed by the bureaucracy, the Pervez Khattak cabinet is adamant in starting monthly honoraria for the prayer leaders of jamia masjids across the province.

The accounting procedure to be adopted for paying the honoraria has been developed by the K-P Auqaf Department in consultation with the K-P finance department and K-P accountant general’s office and currently being sent to the office of the controller general of accounts Islamabad for vetting, said officials in the know-how. “The aim is to check the procedure proposed with the already adopted accounting procedure in country. The recommendations of the controller general of accounts, if any, would be adopted,” the official said.

The chief minister has been pressing for the release of honoraria and wanted to get the Pesh-Imam paid in the month of February but it could not be practicable due to lack of accounting procedure for the payment. The K-P cabinet has approved the project under which the provincial government would start paying monthly honoraria of Rs10,000 and the last meeting of the provincial cabinet the Auqaf Department presented the names of a total 20,699 pesh-imams who fulfill the set- criteria.

The K-P Auqaf minister Habibur Rehman told The Express Tribune that they will pay the Pesh-Imams their March honoraria in April and it got delayed due to technical and legal formalities needed.

“We received lists of 58,000 mosques from across the province but our first criteria was to incorporate only those imams of jamia masajid (where Friday congregations are held) who have a degree from any of the five recognised seminary boards but the number of pesh-imams completing the criteria was low thus we relaxed the conditions,” said Rehman adding that they have received lists of 20,699 who fulfil the criteria and all of them will be paid but there are some Pesh-Imams who do not want to be paid.

Tug of war

“The chief minister wanted the finance department to give the money needed for the payments to the deputy commissioner and the deputy commissioner start disbursement,” said a source close to the matter. Sources informed that the finance department is still not happy with the decision and the finance secretary had returned the summary for the scheme with hard remarks due to its financial implications on the government’s exchequer because of its never-ending count and lack of proper accounting and auditing procedure.

“It will be the fourth largest force of government employees after education, police and health sectors as the individuals getting benefit from the scheme would be in thousands,” said a senior official of the K-P government requesting not to be named adding that the number of pesh-imam would increase with time.

“First it is in violation with the minimum wage set by the government which means that once it is adopted the imam will start demanding it at par with the minimum wage which will further increase the project cost,” said the official adding, “the elected government is not looking into the future financial implications as they see its influence on their vote-bank.”

The official added that after sometime the project’s beneficiaries would start regularisation demands like the contract employees.

Procedure

As per the procedure, for the regulation of pesh-imams in the lists, the deputy commissioner (DC) and Auqaf Department shall constitute a sub-divisional committee which shall hold a meeting in the second week of the month for incorporation of changes in the lists.

The DC shall be the Drawing and Disbursing Officer (DDO) and in that capacity he/she shall prepare annual budget demand on the sub-divisional committee for the honoraria to be incorporated in the district budget and the finance department will release and transfer the funds demanded in the budget to the District Account-IV.

The district government finance upon the receipt of the funds in the District Account-IV shall release the funds to the DC with intimation to district accounts officer concerned.

The DC shall also prepared invoice for the honoraria along with allied expenditures and submit to the district accounts officer for pre-audit and the payments shall be credited to the bank accounts of the pesh-imam.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 2^nd, 2018.