A catalogue of infamy

Innumerable questions arise, principally among them relating to accountability


Editorial September 20, 2018

It is a well-documented reality that Pakistan suffers from poor to appalling governance when it comes to the administration of provincial governments. None of the provinces set gold standards in this respect and have not for decades. The reasons for this chronic inadequacy are also well-documented — blatant corruption, political meddling, incompetent bureaucrats, they all play a part — but sometimes there is revealed an unusually gross catalogue of just about everything that can be done wrong in terms of provincial financial management, and the auditor general of Pakistan (AGP) has presented a report on the finances of the Sindh government that beggars belief.

The AGP has found ‘financial irregularities, misappropriation, embezzlement, fraud and theft’ in public funds to the value of Rs293.85 billion spread across 34 departments of the government of Sindh. The report goes into forensic detail and thus far there has been no refutation of it. A situation like this where about one-third of the entire budget of a province has been in effect stolen by those in whose hands the budget(s) were entrusted does not happen overnight. Tens of thousands of people within the administration have spent years developing the strategies that allow them to milk the provincial exchequer. The AGP report makes public a situation that has been an open secret, and politically supported or tolerated for decades.

Innumerable questions arise, principally among them relating to accountability. The AGP merely lays out the catalogue, and there are no judicial or policing powers attached. It is clear that innumerable crimes have been committed by individuals whose names are known. Some of them will be powerful bureaucrats who are firewalled against the forces of law and order often by a political umbrella. This is corruption and criminality on the grandest of scales. It is institutionalised and will be exceedingly difficult to countervail without ruthless oversight. Thus far there are no reports of individuals being suspended or investigated, neither reports of activity by the police or any federal or provincial investigation agency. Grand larceny, the theft of billions from the ordinary people of Pakistan, is the new normal. Proceed.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 20th, 2018.

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COMMENTS (1)

Gul Mohiudin | 5 years ago | Reply Please donot forget that Sind has been under the rule of PPP for a long time and it’s Co-Chairman, Mr 10% has been laundering money to build assets in Dubai,France and UK. Since plundering public funds cannot be one- man operation , he has practically involved everyone from the administration - civil servants, police officers, politicians, in this massive operation. Since practically everyone of any consequence is involved, there is no protest. These are the fruits of democracy presided over by Pakistani symbols of democracy - Zardaris and Sharifs.
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