Event management company booked

Event management company booked for committing fraud worth Rs30 million in the name of CDA.

ISLAMABAD: An event management company was booked for committing fraud worth Rs30 million in the name of Capital Development Authority (CDA). Aabpara police registered an FIR against three people who own the company Maximal on the complaint of Assistant Director of CDA Syed Muhammad Kashif. The Civic body accused the management company of issuing forged CDA documents to two other companies for arranging functions in connection with CDA’s Golden Jubilee celebrations.

In January 2010, the civic body had agreed to allow Maximal to arrange five functions planned by CDA to celebrate 50 years of the federal capital. Issuing a No Objection Certificate (NOC), CDA authorised the company to erect advertisements around the city. Maximal then hired the services of two events management companies on its own by giving them forged NOCs.

The two companies displayed advertisements in the city but they were removed by CDA authorities. “On inquiry, we discovered that these two companies had NOCs in the name of CDA which were found to be forged,” said Ramzan Sajid, spokesperson CDA.

Maximal had taken Rs25 million and Rs5 million from the two companies respectively for issuing them the forged authority letters. However, the scam was unearthed before the sponsors could be finalised. “There could be potential monetary loss if we end our contract with the company,” said Sajid.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 26^th, 2010.