MUZAFFARGARH: A team of anti-corruption establishment (ACE) on Wednesday arrested an executive engineer (EXEN) of local government department Khurram Abbas for his alleged involvement in making excess payment to contractors.

On the direction of Dera Ghazi Khan ACE Director Syed Mohammed Abbas Shah, a team of Muzaffargarh ACE, led by Deputy Director Mohammed Waseem Leghari, arrested the local government official.

As per first information report, the NAB Multan received a complaint, alleging that tenders for 114 projects of Muzaffargarh and Dera Ghazi Khan local government departments were not held properly as the officials resorted to ‘pool method.’

The scrutiny showed that out of the executed work results of projects awarded to five contractors were found unsatisfactory, causing a loss of Rs2 million, against the total paid amount of Rs22.73m.

The projects involved construction of drain, culverts and bridges in different areas of Muzaffargarh and DG Khan where a case has also been registered against SDO Mohammed Nabeel, sub-engineers and the contractors.

On Wednesday, the ACE team raided the house of EXEN Khurram in Multan and arrested him. He was scheduled to leave for Haj on Wednesday. The raid was conducted on the direction of Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz who ordered the Lahore ACE director general to arrest the ‘front man’ [Khurram Abbas] of ex-CM Usman Buzdar.

The ACE has already arrested highway chief engineer Waseem Khan.

Published in Dawn, June 30th, 2022