KASUR: The inordinate delay in submission of a report by the audit committee on embezzlement worth millions of rupees in the Kasur Tanneries Waste Management Agency (KTWMA) is creating hurdles to fixing the responsibility for corruption on anyone.

The massive corruption caused the failure of the entire water treatment plant set up at the cost of billions of rupees.

The record, available with the district administration, has already unmasked many faces and is likely to roll some heads in a day or two, without waiting for the report of the audit committee.

According to a source, some officials of the district administration and the KTWMA have revealed during investigations that some former DCs, project managers, technical staff, caretakers, audit officers and directors finance have been involved in corruption during the last two decades. It is suggested that district administration should get an audit of the KTWMA right from 2000 to 2020. In 2014, a project manager was arrested and sacked from service over corruption worth millions of rupees. By then, the KTWMA had not appointed any project manager, and the charge had been given to non-technical personnel.

On the orders of the management committee and technical committee, an audit committee, comprising Director Finance Munawar Kasawa and Tannery Association representative Sheikh Fazal Rehman, had started audit for the years 2018 and 2019 some months back. It was supposed to file the report within one week. However, the report has not been filed yet.

The deputy commissioner, who is also managing director and ex-officio chairman of the KTWMA, says the repeated reminders to the audit committee for release of report are falling on deaf ears of its members.

An official of the district administration, on the condition of anonymity, told Dawn, that the audit committee was divided on fixing the responsibility of financial and technical embezzlement, including withdrawal of millions of rupees from the KTWMA account (without mentioning it in the record), theft of costly electric motors used in the water treatment plant, purchase of substandard electric gadgets and other technical irregularities.

Talking to this correspondent, Director Finance Munawar Kasawa, audit committee member, who is also an accounts officer at Kasur District Accounts Office, said the audit committee needed time to probe the allegations in detail and he remained busy with accounts office as June was the closing month.

He dispelled the impression of differences with another member of the committee, Sheikh Fazal Rehman, saying they had no differences.

He further said the audit report of the KTWMA was at its final stage and would be submitted within a few days.

The other member of the committee, Sheikh Fazal Rehman, who is a tannery owner, did not respond despite repeated calls and messages on his mobile phone.

Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2020