KOHAT, July 25: A fourth consecutive discreet inquiry conducted by a team of district administration in a corruption case under the government of Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) has held the former TMO, Kohat, guilty of misappropriating more than Rs20 million.

A senior government official said that the TMO, who had already survived inquiries by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), special branch of police and anti-corruption department, is currently posted in Peshawar’s richest TMA, Town-I.

He was appointed as TMO, Kohat, a grade 18 post when he was in grade 14. He was given rapid promotions during the past few years to retain him as the TMO because the new local government rules barred a junior officer to occupy such an important post.

The recent inquiry was conducted by three senior officials on the orders of the district and tehsil nazims against the TMO, Noor Daraz.

Earlier an official from Charsadda was assigned to conduct an inquiry but despite repeated reminders he did not turn up for the job.

The inquiry report says that according to the cash books the income from bus stands which was Rs0.30 million per month before Noor Daraz took the charge as TMO, Kohat, when it came down to Rs0.20 million.

Similarly, under the head of POL fake bills were passed which caused a loss of Rs2 million to the TMA. In the same manner, during his stay in Kohat, the rent of shops amounting to Rs2.70 million was not deposited in the accounts, the audit report says.

Consequently, the case was referred to the anti-corruption department in 2004 and a decision is still awaited.

The report further says that he spent Rs8.40 million on the repair of tube wells during 2004-05, which had been continuously maintained every year. From the period 2001 to 2004 the TMA spent an amount of Rs4.50 million supposedly on the maintenance/repair of tube wells.

He also embezzled Rs4.60 million against the purchase of sanitation items and streetlights.

He also made 170 illegal appointments of daily wagers in the TMA to please nazims and MPAs who had now been removed from service.

The inquiry officers recommended that the misappropriated amount may be recovered from the TMO through the provincial local government department by constituting an inquiry committee under the special powers 2000.

The most interesting aspect is that the TMO was suspended while serving in Karak for embezzling Rs3.50 million. After been reinstated he misappropriated Rs1.60 million during his short stay in Hangu.

The provincial government also constituted an inquiry against him last year and submitted its findings to the NAB with some undeniable proofs.

A summary attached with the inquiry report says that although belonging to a poor family the TMO while in grade 14 owned a house in the posh KDA locality, rented in it a beauty parlour, wears a Rs35,000-worth wrist watch, his son is studying in a private medical college in Karachi on a self-finance scheme, owns a personal car, and could have coughed up millions which he may have deposited in a dead account. Amazingly, he had proved a hard nut for the NAB team to crack which had put the case in cold storage for obvious reasons.

Social circles hold him responsible for demolishing the Jinnah Library in 2004 and selling the land to build a plaza.

The people were promised that a new library would be constructed on the third floor of the said plaza but the construction work for which the TMA got Rs20 million from the business community had been stopped for the last two years.

The money obtained from the auction of basement and ground floor and deposited in six different accounts had no record as to where and how it was spent.

Many precious books which were shifted to a store in the TMA building are either missing or have been destroyed due to rains whereas thousands of readers had also been left in the lurch.