IT embezzlement: 13 E-services projects referred to FIA

ICT, CDA projects among them, responsibility allegedly lies with IT ministry dept.

ISLAMABAD:

Over a dozen E-services projects initiated by the information technology ministry are now being looked at by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) after charges of embezzlement popped up. Two of these — both intended to help create paperless offices — related to the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Administration and the Capital Development Authority (CDA).

This was revealed by State Minister for IT Anusha Rahman during a Senate Standing Committee on IT meeting held on Thursday. The Electronic Government Directorate (EGD), a department of the IT ministry, had initiated some 13 E-services projects for different departments back in 2004, including two for the ICT and CDA. All the projects have been referred to the FIA due to alleged embezzlement.

Awami National Party (ANP) Senator Zahid Khan chaired the meeting, during which the minister claimed that in August last year, she took notice of the controversial projects. After finding that they were incomplete due to misappropriation, she ordered an internal audit, which found gross financial, administrative and procedural irregularities in the projects.

A senior ministry official said the projects were launched during pervious regimes and the then-project officers were responsible for the misappropriation. He said that it is now the responsibility of the FIA to prosecute them.



An IT ministry official informed the meeting that the EGD had initiated the automation of the chief and deputy commissioners’ offices, and the CDA office to replace the existing paper-based system with an automated one. According to a ministry official, The E-Services project at the commissioners’ offices was initiated in 2004 at a cost of Rs24 million, and was supposed to be completed by 2006.

Despite failing to complete the project in time, the EDG still paid the contractor — a private technology company — Rs21 million.

Islamabad Chief Commissioner Jawad Paul said the ICT administration had been unsuccessfully pursuing the EGD to get it to finish the job as soon as possible.

“ICT was just a client of EGD. It was their responsibility to complete it,” he added. He said that administration will request the ministry to initiate a fresh project in order to facilitate the administration.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 21^st, 2014.