NA passes bill requiring public servants to share asset details

ISLAMABAD: The government on Thursday managed to get a major legislation through the National Assembly, which has made it mandatory for the top civil servants to declare their personal family assets.

To ensure that these assets could become public, a new Section 15 A been added to the Public Servants Act.

Hence, all the officials from Grade-17 and above will not only share their personal financial details, but also that their spouse(s) and dependent children.

In simple words, all civil servants from Grade 17 to 22 will have to disclose the domestic and foreign assets of their entire family to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). The move also covers liabilities, including any loans.

The move is an attempt to promote transparency and accountability in the bureaucracy.

Furthermore, the government is hoping that the latest legislation will promote responsible governance and discourage illicit financial practices among top-ranking public officers.

Why the government benches have introduced this change? In the past, asset declarations by civil servants were limited in scope and not available for public scrutiny.

It meant they were able to accumulate assets, which remained beyond their means under the garb of privacy.