KOHAT, Aug 25: The NWFP local government has suspended two senior officials of the Tehsil Municipal Administration (TMA), Kohat, after an inquiry confirmed their involvement in illegal allotment of loading and unloading contracts that caused huge losses to the department, Dawn has learnt.

The officials were suspended by Deputy Secretary Admin Mansoor Khan under notification No AO1/LCB/EST/6-74/90 issued on Aug 24, 2007.

Sources said that soon after learning about the inquiry against them by the local government, the officials immediately advertised the open auction of both the contracts which was held on Wednesday.

The Kohat Cement Company contract fetched Rs11.7 million at the auction and that of the Oil and Gas Development Company Rs1.6 million for 10 months period (Sept 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008).

The previous contracts were awarded for Rs400,000 each for a period of one year, but these lasted only two months during which the contractors made millions of rupees. The ‘illegal’ contracts were later cancelled.

The sources said that the inquiry committee had recommended the recovery of money from the TMA staff and contractors by imposing heavy fines on them.

The inquiry was initiated on a complaint of TMA Staff Association president Sohail during a strike observed against the delay in payment of salaries.

The association president had accused Tehsil Nazim Dilbar Advocate, Tehsil Municipal Officer Mohammad Younis and Tehsil Officer Revenue Barkatullah of awarding the contracts to the relatives of two union council nazims.

He also accused the TMA officials of awarding the contracts on the partnership basis for Rs400,000 each, while the actual income from these two sites ran in millions.

The two-member probe committee visited the KCC and took into custody the record of payments. It found massive irregularities in the award of contracts.

The accused officials were later summoned to Peshawar to face the charges, but they failed to defend the charges against them.