
It is not possible to say that all of the irregularities uncovered in the audit were the direct result of corruption; and it is entirely possible that some of them are simply the outcome of incompetence or corner-cutting by the responsible individuals and institutions. The necessary checks and balances that always have to be linked to public expenditures are absent or ignored when it suits, rules bent and blind eyes turned. Although the audit is only relevant to the year 2012-13, it is reasonable to assume that there is a culture of fiscal anarchy within the HEC. These irregularities did not spring up like mushrooms overnight and look in some instances to be institutionalised — as in custom and practice within the HEC. The auditors have done their job and for that, we must be grateful. Draining the fiscal cesspool that is the HEC is quite another matter. It is likely to be highly resistant to any changes in its internal workings and will attempt to justify or refute the findings of the auditors, but if it is to retain any credibility, it needs to wash its fiscal face — and what is more, be seen to be doing so.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 1st, 2014.
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