NAB grills health secretary

Official to appears before anti-graft body after notice

LAHORE: An investigation team of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Lahore grilled Secretary for Primary and Secondary Healthcare Ali Jan Khan during a probe into the alleged purchase of medicines at higher rates. The meeting took place at the NAB Complex in Thokar Niaz Beg on Saturday.

He sat before a combined investigations team for over an hour to answer their questions. Jan was also handed over a questionnaire to be filled and submitted to the team.

NAB is probing allegations over the purchase of medicines at exorbitant rates through a central contract in the Punjab Health Facilities Management Company. A summon was issued to Jan on Friday.



It that read “the competent authority (NAB) has taken cognizance, under the provisions of National Accountability Ordinance 1999, of an offence committed by the management of the Punjab Health Facilities Management Company. It states that the inquiry conducted has revealed that you (Ali Jan Khan) are in possession of information/evidence which relates to the commission of the said offence. So appear before the combine investigation team at 12 pm at the bureau’s office.”

Punjab Health Facilities Management Company was one of 56 entities of Punjab, against which NAB started investigations.   In November 2017, NAB Chairman Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal had ordered an inquiry into the companies as NAB had received complaints of corruption, irregularities, nepotism and failure to provide service delivery despite the expenditure of millions of rupees.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan had also taken note of the issue.

NAB also summoned the record of the companies last month had for analysis. Few of the companies included Punjab Saaf Pani Company, Lahore Transport Company, Lahore Waste Management Company, Lahore Parking Company, Multan Cattle Market Management Company, Punjab Livestock and Dairy Development Board and waste management companies.

Meanwhile, NAB Lahore claimed to have distributed an amount of 1,357 million rupees among people affected by fraud in the first four months of the current year.

According to a NAB performance report issued recently, the bureau recovered Rs11.084 million in January, Rs73.965 million in February, Rs90.425 million in March and Rs140.069 in April.

The department claimed to have distributed Rs92.674 million in January, Rs129.728 million in February, Rs76.712 million in March and Rs61.39 million in April.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 27^th, 2018.