Centre Spent Rs5 Trillion on Devolved Subjects
The federal government spent more than Rs5 trillion on devolved subjects and on ministries created for Council of Common Interests (CCI) matters, in violation of the Constitution, the head of a Senate panel said on Tuesday.
Senator Barrister Zamir Hussain Ghumro, who chairs a sub-committee of the Senate Functional Committee on Devolution, cited Auditor General of Pakistan data and put the figure at more than $18 billion.
Ghumro, a PPP senator, said the country faced two linked problems: very high federal spending and heavy borrowing of $135 billion. “At present, federal government expenditure stands at around Rs19 trillion, while total tax and non-tax revenue was Rs20tr, leaving nothing for the provinces and forcing the federal government to resort to heavy borrowing,” he said.
He argued that enforcing the 18th Amendment would have spared Pakistan the need for International Monetary Fund (IMF) handouts.
Rs5 trillion devolved subjects spending
During the last 15 years, the IMF gave Pakistan $15 billion, Ghumro said, while the government spent $18 billion to $20 billion on devolved ministries and institutions. “Had this amount been spent on infrastructure and social development, Pakistan would have been a different country,” he said.
Ghumro explained that the federal government makes two kinds of payments from the Federal Consolidated Fund: “charged expenditure” on senior office-holders, judges and debt servicing, which the National Assembly does not vote on, and “other expenditure” in the form of demands for grants from federal ministries.
“It must not spend a penny on provincial or other purposes,” he said. The money was paid for services the federal government renders under the Constitution, he said, not for health, education, housing or water, which the Constitution assigns to the provinces.
He added that such unauthorised spending of more than Rs5 trillion “amounts to gross misuse of authority under the law and Constitution and must be accounted for legally”. Neither the finance ministry nor the auditor general can approve it, he said, as the money must be meant for services in the Federal Legislative List.
CCI role and 24 ministries
Ghumro said that under Article 154, read with Article 97, executive authority over subjects in Part II of the Federal Legislative List rests with the CCI, not the federal cabinet. The list covers railways, oil and gas, major ports, regulators, national planning and public debt.
The CCI and the Cabinet Division had asked the prime minister to abolish 24 ministries and institutions, but he had yet to respond, so Ghumro directed them to send a fresh note.
In July, the committee raised concern over the return of federal ministries on devolved subjects and formed the sub-committee. Last month it sought a probe into Rs2.6 trillion spent on education and health ministries over 16 years, and in August it warned the Centre was “bleeding” Rs5 trillion to Rs6 trillion a year.
Provinces’ share in federal jobs
The sub-committee also discussed the share of provinces in federal appointments. The Establishment Division told the panel that 5,000 jobs for Balochistan had been advertised, but the committee found a shortage of more than 30,000 jobs in Balochistan’s share and more than 80,000 in Sindh’s share. The federal government must submit a grade-wise position for grades 18 to 22 within 15 days, and the information ministry has 15 days to finalise the devolution of print media functions and broadcasting rights to the provinces under Article 159.
Pakistan has stretched the average maturity of its public debt to 3.8 years, easing the pressure of refinancing, though Rs17 trillion in domestic principal falls due in FY27. The World Bank has been asked for a $1.7 billion loan despite earlier breaches of agreed conditions. Foreign investors put $747 million into government bonds in the first four months of FY27. The petroleum levy brought in Rs220 billion in the first two months of the fiscal year.
Dawn reported the panel’s findings on Tuesday.
Frequently asked questions
How much did the Centre spend on devolved subjects?
More than Rs5 trillion, according to the Senate panel, citing the Auditor General.
Who raised the issue?
Senator Barrister Zamir Hussain Ghumro, who chairs a sub-committee of the Senate Functional Committee on Devolution.
Why does the panel say the spending breaks the Constitution?
The 18th Amendment handed these subjects to the provinces, and the Constitution only allows federal spending on services in the Federal Legislative List.
What is the Council of Common Interests?
It decides matters in Part II of the Federal Legislative List, such as railways, oil and gas and national planning, under Article 154.
What has the panel asked the government to do?
It has asked the CCI and the Cabinet Division to seek the abolition of 24 ministries and institutions from the prime minister.
