LAHORE, March 8: The Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid has urged the Transparency International to provide it certain record of the Metro Bus Service before demanding evidence from the party about the alleged corruption in the mega project.

“As the TIP has signed an MoU with the Punjab government (on investigating irregularities in the project), it must have been given access to the project record. The documents should be provided to us within a week so that evidence of embezzlements and irregularities is pointed out from the same record,” PML-Q senior leader Basharat Raja told a press conference here on Friday.

He said the plea had been taken in a communiqué to a TIP letter in which the party had been asked to provide proofs of alleged corruption in the project.The communiqué seeks terms of reference of the MoU, feasibility report of the MBS and the firm that commissioned the report, its PC-I as well as environmental impact assessment.

It has also sought pre-qualification of firms that took part in the construction of the project as well as details of tendering process.

Mr Raja said as the Punjab government itself had admitted that the project cost Rs30 billion the documents containing approval by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council should also be provided for ENCEC approval which was a legal requirement for any project costing over Rs6 billion.

The PML-Q wants to know about payments made to the affected parties along both sides of the metro bus track, the reasons for using more than one accounts and subdivision of the project into many parts, the rationale behind inclusion of steel into non-scheduled items list.It has also demanded a copy of the international agreement under which the Punjab government is bound to extend Rs22.5 million subsidy daily for the project.Mr Raja said as the government had not made public these documents, the TIP should provide the same to the PML-Q, wondering why being an investigative NGO the agency was seeking evidence from them.

“The agency signed the MoU with the Punjab government but it is seeking evidence from us. We have the evidence but what the TIP will do against the alleged wrongdoings of the Punjab government if the same is provided to it,” he questioned.