Where did the money go?

11 lawmakers provided no records of Rs2.4 billion allocated to them by previous PPP government between 2008 and 2013

Those elected to represent the interests of minority groups are revealed as having done them a considerable disservice, as they have refused to cooperate with government auditors who were in search of records of billions of rupees that the MNAs had been allocated. Religious minorities lead hard and sometimes dangerous lives. Any relief to their considerable miseries ought to be welcome, but 11 lawmakers have provided no records of Rs2.4 billion allocated to them by the previous PPP government between 2008 and 2013. The money was for discretionary development funding, and now these same audit-dodgers are complaining that they have not received the latest tranche of money from government coffers.

Let them complain. Given the sums involved and the length of time covered by the absence of satisfactory record-keeping — or indeed any record-keeping in many instances — no money should be released until a proper audit-trail is established for every MNA on the gravy train. It would appear that there has been a huge misappropriation of funding and the blame for that lies squarely at the door of the legislators who received the money. It must also be noted that the government has not covered itself with glory either and we wonder why it took so many years before the auditors came a-sniffing. The MNAs, who come from across the political spectrum, got away with it because they were allowed to and they must not be allowed to again — an injunction that should apply to all members of parliament and not only to those representing the minorities. We live in a time when there is an increasing expectation of transparency and accountability, and that includes financial probity on the part of all who are public servants elected to all of the chambers. Henceforth let no money be released without the end-users demonstrating their capacity to use it responsibly, and that includes a willingness to provide audited accounts when required. Anything less is simply a licence for embezzlement.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4^th, 2015.

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