ISLAMABAD: A sub-committee of the Public Accounts Committee on Friday took serious notice of the Higher Education Commission’s (HEC) failure to submit annual financial statements for 16 years, directing the commission to complete the exercise within six months.
The meeting was chaired by the PAC sub-committee convener, Senator Shahida Akhtar Ali, and reviewed audit objections related to the HEC for the financial years 2010-11 and 2013-14.
Audit officials told the committee that the HEC had not prepared any financial statements from 2002 to 2018.
Raising concerns over the lapse, Senator Bilal Ahmed Mandokhel questioned how opening balances would be determined if the commission began preparing accounts from 2018 onwards. “If you start from 2018, where will the opening balance come from?” he asked, adding that if there were doubts or discrepancies, the process would naturally require additional time.
The HEC officials responded that their initial focus had been on records from 2018 onwards but assured the committee that earlier records would also be checked. When asked how long it would take to prepare the statements, HEC officials said the task could be completed within one year.
However, audit officials maintained that the work could be completed in less than six months if a competent consultant was hired.
Senator Mandokhel urged the commission to begin work immediately, stating, “If you are serious about this, start from next week and do not waste time.” Audit officials further stressed that the process should begin from 2002.
During the meeting, the committee also examined audit objections related to HEC’s failure to achieve targets set under its Medium-Term Development Framework (MTDF). Audit officials said HEC had set specific targets in 2003 but failed to meet them.
Responding to the objections, HEC officials said that although the commission faced challenges in the initial years, efforts were made to achieve the targets, adding that most objectives had now been met.
Sub-Committee Convener Shahida Akhtar Ali expressed concern over limited access to doctoral education.
The HEC officials also informed the committee that the cost of overseas education had risen sharply, stating that expenses for a single student in the United States could reach up to Rs40 million. “The more funding we receive, the more students we will be able to send abroad,” they added.
