10-01-2005, 12:14 AM
BANKING COMPLAINTS
By Javed â 28 September 2005
Very respected citizen Nazim F. Haji who practically did the civic social work eg establishing the first ever Citizen Police Liaison Committee in Karachi in his letter to a Daily on 19 September 2005 appreciating the establishment of Banking Mohtasib recommends that commercial Banks should give wider publicity about Mohtasib so that the account holders could know how and where to file their complaints. I could not stop laughing on this suggestion of highly learned Nazim Haji. How can the commercial banks put axe on their own feet advising the account holders to go to Banking Mohtasib against themselves.
Would the system of Banking Mohtasib be so successful which should be given wider publicity? The answer can easily be found have the other ombudsmen in our country been successful and attained those goals for which the system was established? In the past on my raising the issue the then Federal Ombudsman issued, to the best of my memories, three Directives to the demised Pakistan Banking Council that every account holder should invariably receive his six monthly statement. Even once he issued order on my reference that account holders must be given a Pass Book. Is today every account holder receiving his six monthly statement? I am an account holder of National Bank of Pakistan. For the last 6-7 years twice a year I write to President of NBP informing him that my six monthly statement had not reached. Then sometime I get a copy. Where goes the original there is no answer to it. Attaching high hopes on newly established Banking Mohtasib I filed a complaint on this issue. In return I got an advice from the Mohtasib that it has contacted NBP and in future I should write to a given named senior if there was any problem in this regard in future. My understanding is that an ombudsman is to âdiagnoseâ the mal administration and then put the derailed system back on right track so that same thing does not happen again. An ombudsman is not supposed merely to see that individual who dared to cry gets the relief. I prayed the Banking Mohtasib that I should know what the Bank had submitted to his office so that I may put my counter comments. Today it is well known a fact if we are to depend on government functionaries departmental statements or replies then in the country there exists no injustice, no delayed issuance of NIC, no excessive telephone bills, no corruption etc. The Banking Mohtasib in return merely told me that the Bank had well explained its 6-monthly statements dispatch system. I had in my mind the Mohtasib will take note that why I was not getting timely my statements, would issue a formal Decision but nothing happened so. The result is separately as my six monthly ritual I am today writing to that advised senior in NBP informing him that my six monthly statement for the period ended 30 June 2005 has still not reached while it is end September. So where is the system improvement namely general impact on society about existence of our costly large ombudsman system?.
About the Banking Mohtasib one thing should not be forgotten that this office has not been established unlike other ombudsman institutions in our beloved country under any Ordinance or by an act of Parliament. The Bank Mohtasib has been established by the State Bank of Pakistan which itself does not care much about the Ombudsman system. Does the SBP bureaucracy really believes on ombudsman sort of forums of accountability? Certainly not. Keep in mind when in second half of 1990s the Federal Ombudsman taking suo moto note of increasing number of written of loans asked the SBP to provide details, it objected and resisted to on the ground of confidentiality. It should also not be forgotten that it is the SBP under whose nose the loans were being given and written off and it remained silent unless it crossed the limit. It only woke up when finance companies had pocketed much from public and not earlier. Same happened in recent foreign exchange companies. So how can SBP be serious in a forum available to ordinary man against the Banks? .
It is an established fact that those having accounts with 4 or 5 digit figures today have no importance for the Banks. Their only wish is that every account holder due to ever increasing cost of living may come to a stage where he has less than Rs. 10,000 balance so it has vast monthly income in the name of less balance penalty which according to reader amounts to millions ever year. If an account holder writes to the Branch say about delayed clearance of draft, about locker etc in 95% cases in 6-8 months despite reminders he never gets any reply from the Branch. After waiting this long 6-8 months how amusing it is that if such an account holder wants to raise his complaint with the Banking Mohtasib, he is required to write âafreshâ to the Branch same letter but this time definitely and invariably using a pre-drafted sentence that he intend to file a complaint with Banking Mohtasib in case from the Branch reply was not received in 90 days. Before expiry of this 90 days one cannot file complaint. Is the earlier 6-8 month patience waiting not enough to see the act of mal administration of the Branch? Can not these Branches or Banks give at their own a reply to an account holder unless a pre-drafted âthreatâ is given to the Bank?
The Banking Mohtasib has been established by the SBP. A Revision petition, as I understand, against the decision of Banking Mohtasib lies with the SBP which means the SBP is the higher and appellate authority. Now how strange it is that a Bank/Branch is given 90 days (in addition to already waited 6-8 months) to give reply only after which Mohtasib can consider processing the complaint whereas the appellant higher authority namely SBP last year issued a Directive to all commercial banks binding them to give reply to complainants within 15 days failing which SBP could take action against the defaulting Branch. Mohtasib prescribes this limit 90 days while appellant authority has prescribed 15 days!!! I approached the Banking Mohtasib giving reference to SBPâs above directive that SBP itself had not given me response in more than 130 days (today about 200 days). Orders, advices, laws, rules are always for others not for self.
By Javed â 28 September 2005
Very respected citizen Nazim F. Haji who practically did the civic social work eg establishing the first ever Citizen Police Liaison Committee in Karachi in his letter to a Daily on 19 September 2005 appreciating the establishment of Banking Mohtasib recommends that commercial Banks should give wider publicity about Mohtasib so that the account holders could know how and where to file their complaints. I could not stop laughing on this suggestion of highly learned Nazim Haji. How can the commercial banks put axe on their own feet advising the account holders to go to Banking Mohtasib against themselves.
Would the system of Banking Mohtasib be so successful which should be given wider publicity? The answer can easily be found have the other ombudsmen in our country been successful and attained those goals for which the system was established? In the past on my raising the issue the then Federal Ombudsman issued, to the best of my memories, three Directives to the demised Pakistan Banking Council that every account holder should invariably receive his six monthly statement. Even once he issued order on my reference that account holders must be given a Pass Book. Is today every account holder receiving his six monthly statement? I am an account holder of National Bank of Pakistan. For the last 6-7 years twice a year I write to President of NBP informing him that my six monthly statement had not reached. Then sometime I get a copy. Where goes the original there is no answer to it. Attaching high hopes on newly established Banking Mohtasib I filed a complaint on this issue. In return I got an advice from the Mohtasib that it has contacted NBP and in future I should write to a given named senior if there was any problem in this regard in future. My understanding is that an ombudsman is to âdiagnoseâ the mal administration and then put the derailed system back on right track so that same thing does not happen again. An ombudsman is not supposed merely to see that individual who dared to cry gets the relief. I prayed the Banking Mohtasib that I should know what the Bank had submitted to his office so that I may put my counter comments. Today it is well known a fact if we are to depend on government functionaries departmental statements or replies then in the country there exists no injustice, no delayed issuance of NIC, no excessive telephone bills, no corruption etc. The Banking Mohtasib in return merely told me that the Bank had well explained its 6-monthly statements dispatch system. I had in my mind the Mohtasib will take note that why I was not getting timely my statements, would issue a formal Decision but nothing happened so. The result is separately as my six monthly ritual I am today writing to that advised senior in NBP informing him that my six monthly statement for the period ended 30 June 2005 has still not reached while it is end September. So where is the system improvement namely general impact on society about existence of our costly large ombudsman system?.
About the Banking Mohtasib one thing should not be forgotten that this office has not been established unlike other ombudsman institutions in our beloved country under any Ordinance or by an act of Parliament. The Bank Mohtasib has been established by the State Bank of Pakistan which itself does not care much about the Ombudsman system. Does the SBP bureaucracy really believes on ombudsman sort of forums of accountability? Certainly not. Keep in mind when in second half of 1990s the Federal Ombudsman taking suo moto note of increasing number of written of loans asked the SBP to provide details, it objected and resisted to on the ground of confidentiality. It should also not be forgotten that it is the SBP under whose nose the loans were being given and written off and it remained silent unless it crossed the limit. It only woke up when finance companies had pocketed much from public and not earlier. Same happened in recent foreign exchange companies. So how can SBP be serious in a forum available to ordinary man against the Banks? .
It is an established fact that those having accounts with 4 or 5 digit figures today have no importance for the Banks. Their only wish is that every account holder due to ever increasing cost of living may come to a stage where he has less than Rs. 10,000 balance so it has vast monthly income in the name of less balance penalty which according to reader amounts to millions ever year. If an account holder writes to the Branch say about delayed clearance of draft, about locker etc in 95% cases in 6-8 months despite reminders he never gets any reply from the Branch. After waiting this long 6-8 months how amusing it is that if such an account holder wants to raise his complaint with the Banking Mohtasib, he is required to write âafreshâ to the Branch same letter but this time definitely and invariably using a pre-drafted sentence that he intend to file a complaint with Banking Mohtasib in case from the Branch reply was not received in 90 days. Before expiry of this 90 days one cannot file complaint. Is the earlier 6-8 month patience waiting not enough to see the act of mal administration of the Branch? Can not these Branches or Banks give at their own a reply to an account holder unless a pre-drafted âthreatâ is given to the Bank?
The Banking Mohtasib has been established by the SBP. A Revision petition, as I understand, against the decision of Banking Mohtasib lies with the SBP which means the SBP is the higher and appellate authority. Now how strange it is that a Bank/Branch is given 90 days (in addition to already waited 6-8 months) to give reply only after which Mohtasib can consider processing the complaint whereas the appellant higher authority namely SBP last year issued a Directive to all commercial banks binding them to give reply to complainants within 15 days failing which SBP could take action against the defaulting Branch. Mohtasib prescribes this limit 90 days while appellant authority has prescribed 15 days!!! I approached the Banking Mohtasib giving reference to SBPâs above directive that SBP itself had not given me response in more than 130 days (today about 200 days). Orders, advices, laws, rules are always for others not for self.
