REACHING OUT: OPC delegation members with officials of Pakistan Muslim League (N) Welfare Qatar.
By Umer Nangiana
The newly established Overseas Pakistanis Commission (OPC), a body to address problems of Pakistanis living abroad, recently held a road show in collaboration with the Punjab Board of Investment and Trade (PBIT).
The 10-member delegation, led by Capt (retd) Shaheen Khalid Butt, Vice Chairperson of OPC, arrived in Doha and held meetings with the community members in which they were briefed about the services being offered by different government bodies.
“We are offering services, without any discrimination, to every Pakistani living abroad. You can reach us for any of your problems back home and we will try to help you,” assured Capt Butt. The commission has so far received over 500 complaints and more than 40% of them have been addressed, he added.
He was speaking to members of Pakistani community during a special event organised at the embassy here. Butt described to the audience the functions and objectives of the commission which was established on November 10, 2014. He said overseas Pakistanis have been facing several problems and Chief Minister of Punjab Shahbaz Sharif has strategised a plan where an office of OPC has been legislated by the Punjab Assembly in order to overcome these issues through single-window operation.
He said the government wishes to establish similar commissions in all provinces of Pakistan. However, he added that till these commissions are set-up, overseas Pakistanis from any province could contact OPC Punjab for redress.
“He said the main objectives of the organisation are not only redressing the complaints but also facilitating the citizens in every possible manner. You will feel as if you have come to your family member when you will contact us for any help,” claimed Capt Butt.
The commission can help in redressing problems related to but not limited to driver’s licence, passport, national identity card, property disputes and housing societies, family disputes, criminal cases, telephone, electricity, gas and water connection issues, travel agents and airline-related cases and financial matters.
OPC commissioner Afzaal Ahmed Bhatti told the audience that all the related information is available on commission’s website www.opc.punjab.gov.pk
Complainants can contact them online or dial 24/7 helpline number following which they will be given a unique identity number to track their complaints. The helpline number is +92 42 111 672672.
Lubna Pathan, Director-General, Projects and Policy Research, PBIT, said overseas Pakistanis can contact PBIT to inquire about host of investment opportunities available in Pakistan.
Other members of the delegation visiting Qatar included, Afzaal Ahmed Bhatti, OPC Commissioner, Syed Ahmed Mubin Zaidi, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Azad Ali Tabasum, MPA (Faisalabad), Ihsan ul Haq Bajwa, MPA (Bahawalnagar), Chaudhary Noor ul Hassan Tanvir, President, PML (N), Middle East, Chaudhary Mohammad Shafi, Vice President, PML (N), Middle East and Col (retd) Mazhar Qayyum.
The delegation members also attended a function organised by Pakistan Muslim League (N) Welfare Qatar. Chief Patron of the organisation Pervez Iqbal said that the OPC is a long-standing demand and that the present government was working for the welfare of overseas Pakistanis.
President of PML-(N) Welfare Wing, Rashid Rafique Butt, expressed immense pleasure on the establishment of OPC and said the present government has undertaken huge developmental projects and attracted foreign investment into Pakistan.
“We can only work peacefully abroad if we know that our family and our properties back home are safe,” said Butt, a Doha-born businessman whose father Mohammad Rafique Butt had arrived in Qatar in 1968.
