Misuse of funds

The misuse of discretionary funds to influence elections has been consistently highlighted by the media in recent years. According to a recent report published in this paper, the bureaucracy has finally identified a former bureaucrat who has been instrumental in helping not only the current government in misusing funds, but was also responsible in diverting public money in the previous PPP-led government.

Asif Sheikh, who has got regular extensions after his retirement in 2008, is still serving as the adviser development budget. Even despite being identified as the person who played a crucial role in devising a mechanism to divert Public Sector Development Programme funds for parliamentarians’ schemes, he is still serving in an important position. In a note to the Secretary Planning, Development and Reform, the Joint Chief Economist, operations of the ministry, requested immediate removal of Sheikh from his position. However, the note that was sent to Planning Secretary Shoaib Siddiqui on Nov 24 still awaits action.

Sheikh, who is now 70-year-old and cannot be a government contractual employee as the maximum age limit is 65, is also using administrative and financial powers. The Supreme Court has already given a judgment in which it barred discretionary spending by the PM. But despite that the PML-N government doled out about Rs94 billion among parliamentarians during the past couple of years.

This is yet another example of blatant misuse of public money by a nexus of public representatives and bureaucrats. On the one hand, the PML-N says it is doing everything to strengthen the democratic system and on the other, it is involved in undermining that same system by directly influencing the next general elections in its favour.

Leading political parties, whether the PPP or the PML-N, are not learning the lesson. All such attempts to make short-term gains to win few seats can help them temporarily, but weakens the system in the long run. Resultantly, the system is unable to produce any meaningful result and thus people are fast losing their faith in it.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 17^th, 2017.

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