Pakistani expatriates have criticised the Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OPF), saying it is serving only the rich.
The Islamabad-based, state-run welfare organisation has been offering many welfare and housing schemes for the last 24 years. But a majority of Non-resident Pakistanis (NRPs) say the schemes are only beneficial to businessmen and rich Pakistanis.
The OPF, which operates under the Pakistani Ministry of Labour, Manpower, and Overseas Pakistanis, was established in 1979 for the welfare of overseas Pakistani workers and the funds are mainly based on the fees collected from the NRPs.
Munir Ahmad, a master tailor in Al Ain, said the organisation has done nothing for the low-income Pakistanis. "We form a vast majority of the NRPs but we are the ones who are being ignored."
He said a majority of NRPs in the UAE earn an average monthly salary of Dh1,000 and cannot afford to participate in the occasional OPF schemes, like the housing projects.
The OPF has developed several housing schemes in the past for overseas Pakistanis and the price of a single unit is Rs2.5 million to Rs3 million, (Dh161,000 to Dh194,000), he said.
"Should we not take it as a clear mockery of us? How on earth can a low-income NRP even think of participating in such schemes? Obviously, they have all been for rich Pakistanis living in Europe and America," he said.
He urged the organisation to start housing schemes for low-income groups as most of them have gone abroad just to save enough money to own a home for their families.
Mohammed Ashraf Siddiqui, a Pakistani community leader in Abu Dhabi, described the OPF as a useless organisation which has neglected ordinary NRPs. "It is such a big organisation with assets of billions of rupees, but it is giving nothing to the majority of its members."
Siddiqui said, "Overseas workers are an asset to the country, but the OPF has shattered their confidence in Pakistani organisations."
Syed Naseer Hussain, an expatriate in Al Ain, said many of the OPF schemes did not render actual benefits to the NRPs. Giving the example of Remittance Cards, he said the holders of these cards are promised many benefits by the OPF, but they are just cosmetic in nature.
"I am under the impression that the OPF recognises Pakistanis in Europe and America as overseas workers and not the majority working here," he said.
Mustaffa Malik, another Pakistani in Al Ain, said the OPF should set up an exclusive and dedicated centre here so that the NRPs can solve the problems their families face back home.
Malik said contacting the OPF through post and sending applications through the embassy's labour and welfare sections consumes a lot of time.
Maroof Afzal, Labour counsellor at Pakistani Embassy in Abu Dhabi, however, said: "There is no need for a separate OPF cell here as all the services are being effectively provided by the embassy."
The embassy and its consulate general in Dubai, he said, are actively serving more than 500,000 Pakistanis in the Emirates.
Gulf News
