LAHORE: After the outgoing chairman of the Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC) levelled corruption allegations, Punjab Minister for Industries, Commerce, Investment and Skill Development Mian Aslam Iqbal has asked Chief Minister Usman Buzdar to get a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) probe done into the company’s financial matters.

Mr Iqbal wrote to the chief minister on Wednesday he tried his level best to add value to the operations of the LWMC and that his association with the company was for a limited time.

“To maintain fair play and restore order in the company, I suggest that the financial affairs of the organisation may be referred to NAB for an independent inquiry,” reads his letter.

The letter comes after outgoing LWMC chairman Malik Amjad Ali Noon, who submitted his resignation on Sunday (Feb 21) first met the prime minister on Monday and then Mr Buzdar on Tuesday and apprised them of the reasons for his resignation.

Seeks NAB probe into company’s financial affairs

He alleged corrupt practices allegedly on the part of the provincial government forced him to quit the job.

The minister narrates his services, which he rendered for the LWMC to make Lahore garbage-free as per the direction of the CM. He said the company, till Jan 15, collected 30,000 tons of waste and disposed it off in an environment-friendly way and the city was almost municipal-waste-free. He also appreciates the efforts of the officers and staff of the LWMC, who, according to him, achieved this target within a short span of time.

The minister also speaks highly of LWMC officers against whom the chairman levelled allegations.

“They are career officers of the Metropolitan Corporation of Lahore who were recommended by undersigned for posting in LWMC on a deputation basis,” the letter goes on.

“What started as an attempt to improve service delivery and to reduce the operational cost of the company, I ended up being ridiculed and maligned by the LWMC chairman. I find these allegations very disturbing given my unblemished public service career spanning over two decades. I feel compelled to bring to light the reasons behind these outburst by the chairman,” he deplores.

The minister says he detected more than 5,000 ghost employees in the company funds besides misappropriation in 85,000 litre petrol per month. He claims the commission mafia of these ghost sanitary workers siphoned off millions of rupees.

He says the chairman also failed to act upon the recommendation of an HR audit that observed many officials had bogus credentials.

He said to resuscitate this failing company, he designed a cost effective solution with a clear roadmap to building capacity of the LWMC that aims to reduce expenditures from Rs14 billion to seven billion.

Talking to Dawn, Mr Noon, however, rejected the minister’s statements.

“Actually, he (the minister) wanted to close the company and hand it over to the MCL.”

The issue caused a severe disturbance in the company as all executives gathered before the Board of Directors and threatened to approach court for taking a stay order. He said in fact he had told the minister about ghost workers.

Published in Dawn, February 25th, 2021