Audit report: Canker of corruption eats into interior ministry

Auditor General of Pakistan reveals mismanagement and irregularities worth billions in accounts of the ministry.

ISLAMABAD:

The Ministry of Interior has lost an estimated sum of Rs2.5 billion to corruption, irregularities and mismanagement during the last fiscal year, placing several key projects in limbo due to scarcity of funds.

The top corruption watchdog, Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) revealed corruption, mismanagement and irregularities worth Rs2.5 billion in accounts of the interior ministry whose fiscal year budget was estimated to be Rs56 billion in 2011-12.

The Supreme Court was also moved against alleged massive corruption of Rs281 billion in the ministry department and former interior minister Rehman Malik was made respondent in the case.

Annual audit report 2011-12 was also presented to the Parliament last month and auditors have observed that major portion of this misappropriated amount was not deposited in government’s accounts by the administration of Pakistan Rangers Punjab, Frontier Constabulary and Frontier Corps (FC).



The annual audit report also available with The Express Tribune revealed that Pakistan Rangers, Punjab failed to deposit Rs488 million in government treasury even though the management received this huge amount from borrowing organisations during 2006-12.

Rangers’ personnel were deployed at the New Benazir Bhutto International Airport, Water and Power and Development Authority (Tarbela and Ghazi Brotha Dams), Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources for the protection of gas pipelines in Punjab and Fatima Fertilizer Company. The report observed that the retention and utilization of government receipt was irregular, depriving the government of its receipt.

Interior Ministry paid Rs682 million to employees of the Frontier Constabulary (FC) and Frontier Corps in 2011-12, the AGP observed. The report revealed that the paid amount was irregular and unauthorized. Auditors were of the view that the conveyance allowance paid to employees residing within their work premises and during movement were provided with official transport which was irregular and unauthorized.

The management of Islamabad Capital Territory Police incurred unauthorized expenditures of Rs265 million of which some Rs100 million were paid out as cash reward to the employees and Rs31 million were spent on Road Safety Education and Rs136 million on renovation of government offices.

Auditors observed that the expenditures were incurred without framing rules with the concurrence of the finance division.

The management of Pakistan Rangers Punjab paid Rs263 million as conveyance allowance to its employees during 2011-12, while the employees were residing within the work premises. The management of FC and its various formations deducted Rs154.2 million from the salaries of employees without approval from the finance division. The deduction of salary of employees was illegal, added the report.



National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) did not deposit Rs64.2 million in the account of interior ministry, which asked the authority to collect armed licenses’ fee.

NADRA, on approval of the ministry issued 5, 982 prohibited and 3, 881 non-prohibited licences, the report added.  The management of district offices of FC, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) failed to recover Rs137 million from borrowing organisations in account of FC personnel deployment in Dassu, Oghi, Islamabad and Gilgit. The auditors recommended early recovery of the said amount from the borrowing agencies.

The government lost Rs46 million as it allowed deployment of FC personnel with private individuals at public expense which was irregular, observed AGP.

Around Rs80 million were irregularly spent on purchasing of additional vehicles by the top officials in FC Peshawar and Pakistan Rangers in Punjab, the report revealed.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 13^th, 2013.