LAHORE: In a major development, the director general audit (power) — a wing of the Department of the Auditor General of Pakistan — has launched an investigation into massive corruption of billions of rupees in the National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC) allegedly on the part of its Managing Director (MD) Manzoor Ahmad, among others.

The DG (Audit) has constituted an inquiry team headed by Deputy Director (Audit) Aqsa Lodhi with a direction to complete and submit a fact-finding report into the allegations against the NTDC MD within seven days, Dawn has learnt.

“The DG audit (power) vide letter bearing No DGAP/Complaint Cell/F-70/NTDC/198 of April 14 has directed the undersigned to submit a comprehensive fact-finding report against various allegations mentioned in different complaints within seven days,” reads a letter written to the NTDC management a couple of days ago.

The allegations against the MD mentioned in the letter included illegal payment made on Neelum-Jhelum crop compensation worth Rs2 billion, illegal appointment of the MD, unjustified payment of retention money made to M/S Usman & Company worth Rs27.953 million and a loss of Rs66.39m, issuing of a bogus clearance certificate by the NTDC general manager (technical) and ignoring the pending discrepancies in the high-voltage direct current (HVDC) Matiari-Lahore transmission line project and non-transparency in the award of different contracts such as 220kV Nowshera grid stations, 500kV Faisalabad grid station, 500kV grid for CASA-1000 project, work on 100km line from Afghanistan border to Nowshera awarded under CASA-1000 project and techno economics study for 765kV line in the World Bank-sponsored Dasu Hydropower Project’ transmission line scheme.

The other allegations being probed into include consistent issues in the Matiari-Lahore line under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), corruption in land acquisition for the 500kV Chakwal grid station and irregular increase in the contract price of work on the construction of 220kV Chashma-Bannu transmission line.

“In order to probe into these allegations, issue-wise requisition of record was placed. Therefore, the same may please be passed on to the quarters concerned to provide requisite records/documents,” the letter seeks, reminding that since the audit team had very limited time, all quarters concerned may be directed to submit the record soon.

It warns that a delay in the supply of records would not be accepted and it would be reported to the office of the AGP. It seeks the appointment of a focal person to keep close liaison with the investigating team in order to finalise the contents of the complaints.

It quotes the AGP as pressing hard for early finalisation of the allegations and requests all concerned to provide the relevant record on top priority besides extending full cooperation for the finalisation of the fact-finding report.

However, an official source claimed the MD managed to get the acting charge of office when he was the GM in connivance with some officers in the power ministry.

The source said the MD and some officers worked in Sindh on the 132kV lines in 2014, which was not taken over by the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company due to substandard work. The HVDC line under CPEC was controversially given a clearance in spite of a substandard job. The MD suspended many senior officers who had raised objections to illegal clearance to the project.

“Moreover, all the contracts of 220kV Faisalabad-Nowshera line, CASA-1000 and techno-economic survey were not as per the legal requirement due to involvement of the then officer concerned, the sitting MD.

“He allegedly got these projects sublet to the companies of his choice,” he maintained, adding that techno-economic survey was eyewash where millions of rupees were wasted to oblige someone.

On the other hand, a spokesman for the NTDC dispelled the impression the DG audit’s letter was an inquiry, saying it merely sought records of some old complaints, which were again being circulated anonymously.

“This is a normal process in government departments, where auditors may raise certain objections and seek their answers. Normally, these paras/objections get removed once they are responded to by the respondent with available records. Similarly, the aforementioned letter will be responded to in letter and spirit,” he added.

Published in Dawn, April 24th, 2022