The most glaring irregularities that raised the eyebrows of the ADB were disbursements of Rs74.4 billion funds among the beneficiaries without having any guiding regulations and without approval of the board of the BISP. ILLUSTRATION: JAMAL KHURSHID
Federal auditors unearthed financial irregularities worth Rs146.8 billion in the Benazir Income Support Programme – now known as the Pakistan Income Support Fund - irking the Asian Development Bank (ADB) as the Manila-based lending agency is considering approval of a $430 million loan for the social safety programme.
According to an audit report for the financial year 2011-12, the office of the Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) highlighted eighteen serious audit observations on the accounts of BISP – the flagship programme of the previous government. The report was tabled in the National Assembly this week and will be taken up by Public Accounts Committee (PAC) for a decision.
The most glaring irregularities that raised the eyebrows of the ADB were disbursements of Rs74.4 billion funds among the beneficiaries without having any guiding regulations and without approval of the board of the BISP, and non-reconciliation of funds to the tune of Rs65.1 billion provided to the Pakistan Post and commercial banks for disbursement among beneficiaries.
ADB’s Vice President Xiaoyu Zhao raised the issue of audit observations with the Finance Minister Ishaq Dar during his two-day visit to Islamabad, said sources. Pakistan and the ADB are negotiating a $430 million in budgetary support for the BISP.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the Economic Affairs Division Zafar Yab said the ADB did raise the “observation”, which was clarified by the finance minister to the satisfaction of the lending agency. He said the audit report will not affect the ongoing negotiations for $430 million.
The officials said the ADB was informed that the finalisation of the audit report did not mean that irregularities have been proven. They were told that the only the PAC can decide the fate of the audit report. So far, the ADB has not made it a condition to settle the report for obtaining the loan, they added.
ADB spokesperson Ismail Khan also said that the loan negotiations were on track, and after completing the formalities on Pakistan’s request, the loan package will be sent to the ADB’s executive board for approval.
Under the BISP Act of 2010, the board was supposed to formulate regulations for disbursement of funds. But BISP’s management made payments during 2010-11 and 2011-12 under the poverty scorecard, parliamentarian system, waseela-e-haq, waseela-e-rozhar, wasela-e-sehat and emergency relief packages without notifying. These payments of Rs74.4 billion were “irregular”, according to the audit report.
The auditors also could not find reconciled accounts for other payments worth Rs65.1 billion made through the Pakistan Post Office (PPO) and commercial banks. The accounts were not maintained in spite of the fact that the BISP entered into an agreement with PPO and commercial banks for reconciliation of the payments. “The payments were made without adjusting previously undisbursed amounts available with the entities,” the auditors observed. In absence of reconciliation accounts, the BISP management was unaware of the status of funds and discrepancies, they added.
The auditors also caught duplicate payments to beneficiaries through PPO and Benazir Credit Card worth Rs1.4 million.
Various audit objections also pertained to irregular benefits extended to the executives and employees of BISP. These related to irregular payment of house rent allowances to people who were sent by the government to serve in another country, adoption of special pay scales by the BISP without approval of the finance ministry, irregular and unauthorised payments of cash rewards to the World Bank consultants to the tune of millions of rupees, and irregular facility of conveyance.
The auditors also highlighted audit observation giving advertisement contracts of Rs1.7 billion without due evaluation and by bypassing laid down procedures. They also raised objections to irregular appointments in State Life Insurance Corporation (SLIC) without open competition. The BISP paid Rs2.8 billion to the SLIC, the report said.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 24th 2013.
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Those people who were given this money under any name , should be arrested. Their properties or any assets must be confiscated. These people should be put in jail for rest of their life till they die. Those people who approved the money for them should be treated same way.
Some one should investigate how many persons on BISP traveled overseas.I understand,that one department noted that over 300 recipients of BISP had traveled to North America. Look into it and find the correct facts
Budget support has failed in almost all countries, because it is prone to fraud and corruption. It is likely that if the auditor would increase its sample size that the detected irrigularities will increase as well.
ADB has enough dealings with this Nation and its people to simply realise that this was a plain and simple scam ! Nothing more, the monies were forward to those who are not answerable or accountable ! So why should any international institution trust these crooks ?