EOBI scandal: FIA finds evidence of shadowy deals

Plots purchased bypassing PPRA, EOBI Operating Rules.

LAHORE:

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has disclosed that the Employees Old-Age Benefit Institution (EOBI) made obscure investments as it purchased multi-billion rupees properties in Lahore.

An FIA report available with The Express Tribune says the EOBI purchased these properties in a non-transparent manner by bypassing the PPRA Rules and Operating Manual of the EOBI rules.

The FIA has prepared the interim charge-sheets against the accused, including EOBI former chairman Zafar Iqbal Gondal in all the seven registered cases and has submitted them before the Court of Special Judge Central Lahore last week.

The FIA informed the court that the contents of the FIRs proved correct during course of investigation. The Supreme Court is going to hear the case on September 17 in its Lahore Branch Registry.

The report states that National Engineering Services Pakistan (Nespak) submitted a preliminary valuation report on the questioned properties purchased by the EOBI.

The FIA, on noticing serious flaws, rejected various aspects of Nespak’s preliminary valuation on technical grounds and asked both EOBI and the Nespak to provide a comprehensive valuation report, covering all aspects to justify the value of each questioned property, said a senior official of the FIA.

The report further revealed that the FIA has obtained the bank account statements of all the firms/sellers of properties to the EOBI. On their analyses, it has identified suspected cash/credit entries, and the recipients have been summoned to determine their authenticity.

Statements of some of the members of the Investment Committees/Board of Trustees have been recorded. However, their role shall be determined in the light of record provided by the EOBI and Ministry of Human Resources Development (HRD), it says.

The FIA is also going to investigate the call records data (CDR) of the alleged individuals. “The purpose of the call details is to establish the link of the accused; while the bank accounts details are going definitely to help in unearthing of scam,” said a member of the investigation team while talking to The Express Tribune.

Meanwhile, in a high-level meeting held on Monday at the FIA headquarters in Islamabad, the FIA teams briefed its Director General (DG) Saud Ahmed Mirza on the progress in cases relating to the multi-billion rupee EOBI scandal.

The FIA Director Punjab Qudratullah Khan informed the DG that two accused identified as the EOBI Director Investment Asif Azad and Daimen Associates valuator Mian Wamiq had been arrested, while the efforts were under way to arrest the remaining accused.

“The DG FIA has directed the officials to continue the investigation process purely on merit bases without any discrimination and to ensure that the orders of the Supreme Court are followed in letter and spirit,” a participant of the high level meeting said.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 15^th, 2013.