Punjab govt opens inquiry against six suspended PHA officials

Officials were allegedly involved in embezzlement in import of artificial grass

RAWALPINDI: Provincial government has initiated departmental inquiry against six suspended officials of Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) under Punjab Employees Efficiency, Discipline and Accountability Act 2006 as they were arrested for alleged embezzlement in importing of artificial grass for two under construction football grounds.

Secretary housing and urban development has formed an inquiry team that would proceed against  former PHA Director General Dr Abid Malik Director Aziz Ullah, Deputy Director Saqib Illahi, Assistant Director Khalid Saeed Butt, and Sub Engineer Shakeel Ahmed after they were suspended on August 3 over charges of committing embezzlement in import of artificial grass.

The Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) Rawalpindi arrested the five PHA officials with Khawar Saeed, a private contractor and started investigations. The ACE investigators on Monday obtained physical remand of the arrested men for three more days.



In the meantime, the administrative work at PHA had started suffering in absence of a head of the body. Wages of about 400 contract workers for month of August are being delayed as the government is yet to appoint a new DG for the PHA.

A point to be noted is that PHA officials along with the contractor were arrested for importing sub-standard artificial grass for football grounds at Shahbaz Sharif Park on Rawal Road and at Government Boys Degree College Satellite Town.

They were arrested after an inquiry held by the chief minister’s special inspection team on complaint of former PML-N MNA Hanif Abbasi.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 9^th, 2017.