MULTAN: The Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) Multan lodged a first information report (FIR) against 14 officials and contractors of the Metropolitan Corporation (MC) over misappropriation in the payment of Rs130 million under various heads.

It was also proved that fake signatures of former commissioner/MC administrator Shanul Haq had been used. Mr Haq’s role will be determined during the course of investigation.

According to an official handout, the FIR was registered on the directives of the ACE director general (DG) on a complaint by Multan Division additional commissioner coordination.

As per an inquiry, a reference was sent by the additional commissioner on Nov 12, 2020 stating that bogus payments were made in the MC after the transfer of Mr Haq through his fake signatures. The complaint was based on a report by a departmental inquiry team constituted on the orders of Commissioner/MC Administrator Javed Akhtar Mehmood.

The team stated that payments of Rs130m were made under various heads from Aug 24 to Sept 5, 2020. Out of which Rs53m were paid through fake signatures of Mr Haq, Rs20m without approval from the competent authority/administrator and Rs33.28m and Rs24.5m paid without presenting any document to the then commissioner/administrator.

On receiving the complaint, ACE DG Gohar Nafeees had directed ACE Regional Director Haidar Abbas Wattoo on Nov 13 that a similar inquiry is under process in the region so both inquiries should be merged and a complete report submitted within 10 days. The earlier inquiry pertained to the Pakistan Super League matches in Multan.

The inquiry team stated that nine files about various procurements worth Rs53.3m were analysed by the Punjab Forensic Science Agency to ascertain the genuineness of the signatures of Mr Haq and Development and Finance Director (Commissioner Office) Waqas Khan Khakwani.

The forensic agency declared the signatures of both officers fake and bogus. The inquiry report stated that most of the procurement pertained to 2013 and 2017 and by affixing fake signatures, it could be inferred that these files were concealed to defraud the state exchequer.

“Moreover, fixing the fake signature in order to draw money from the state exchequer is tantamount to criminal misconduct, corruption, forgery…,” it stated.

It held former municipal officer (finance) Amjad Hussain, former audit and accounts director Muhammad Younis Khosa, Municipal Officer (I) Shaukat Buzdar, Senior Sub-Engineer Ijaz Arshad, Sub-Engineer Hafeezullah and nine contractors/companies responsible.

ACE DG Nafees said indiscriminate action would be taken against all those involved in the scam. No one would be allowed to cause a loss to the public exchequer, he said.

Published in Dawn, March 18th, 2021