‘Ghost schemes’: FIA starts probe into public spending

LAHORE:

The Anti-Corruption Circle of the FIA has started a probe into ‘ghost’ projects in under the Peoples Works Programme-II.

According to Public Works Department, up to Rs340 million has been misspent.

FIA Punjab Director Usman Anwar said the probe was initiated following a letter the PWD director general sent to him on Friday.

He said in NA-98, in 34 schemes costing Rs391m, as much as Rs246m involving 31 schemes were suspect.

Superintendent Engineer Chaudhry Nawaz had been tasked to carry out an inspection of schemes executed under the PWP-II in NA-98. MNA Tariq Mehmood had contacted the PWD for inspection of schemes in his constituency. 34 development schemes in NA-98 were checked and copies of physical inspection reports were compiled. According to these reports, a loss of Rs246 million was found through embezzlement, bogus payments or substandard work.

Nine officers suspected of a role in causing the loss were identified

Published in The Express Tribune, March 3^rd, 2014.