• Shehbaz vows to ‘protect interests of farmers’, tells officials to address grievances in four days
• Govt spokesperson blames caretakers for crisis; PTI seeks judicial commission for probe

LAHORE: As Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif pledges to “protect the interests of farmers at all costs”, the federal government appears reluctant to thoroughly investigate the mega scam and take action against those at the helm at the time of the import.

At present, a fact-finding committee — formed earlier this week to identify irregularities in the import — is led by Cabinet Secretary Kamran Ali Afzal. The committee is tasked with probing the matter and its report is likely to be furnished before the cabinet next week.

A PML-N source told Dawn that former prime minister and PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif wanted the Shehbaz-led coalition government to take “indiscriminate” action against those involved in the alleged scam without any regard for their “strong political clout”.

During a meeting at the PML-N’s Model Town office, it was suggested that the NAB or the FIA be engaged to in­v­estigate the alleged scam, but the She­hbaz government on Saturday said that no such decision was on the cards.

“The government has no such int­ention (to engage the NAB/FIA to probe wheat import scam),” Infor­mation Minister Attaullah Tarar told Dawn. An insider source claimed that since the scam was largely related to former caretaker premier Anwaarul Haq Kakar’s government, the Shehbaz adm­inistration “is treading very carefully”.

In response to a query as to why the government was reluctant to engage NAB since the alleged scam exceeded Rs500 million as per new laws and why the caretaker premier was not being summoned, the information minister chose to stay silent.

Against this backdrop, reports have also emerged that the Shehbaz Sharif government imported wheat to the tune of Rs98 billion after the Feb 8 polls. However, a senior government official told Dawn that the Shehbaz cabinet had not taken such a decision. However, the government inquiry committee is reportedly probing this import as well. Similarly, Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari blamed the caretaker government for the current wheat crisis, saying the incumbent regime had nothing to do with it.

Kakar-Abbasi spat

Earlier in the day, reports were making rounds in the media that Mr Kakar and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had been summoned by the fact-finding committee, prom­p­ting the committee head to issue a clarifying statement. Kamran Ali Afzal said the committee had not summoned Mr Kakar and Mr Naqvi. However, former caretaker finance minister Shamshad Akhtar has reportedly been summoned by the committee.

The ex-caretaker premier also had an argument with a PML-N leader, Hanif Abbasi, over the wheat scandal. Mr Abbasi reportedly chided Mr Kakar for the wheat scam while the latter said if he spoke about the ‘Form-47s’ the PML-N leaders would not be in a position to appear in the public.

The PTI also jumped the bandwagon and sought a judicial commission to transparently probe the wheat scandal in light of a spat between Mr Kakar and Hanif Abbasi.

Meanwhile, a PTI spokesperson said that Mr Kakar and Mr Abbasi’s revelations were an “eye-opener”, which raised many important questions that needed to be probed. It sought a probe into the wheat scandal and alleged theft of public mandate.

Shehbaz for farmers

Separately, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has pledged to “protect the interest of farmers at any cost.”

Presiding over a meeting at his residence in Model Town on Saturday to review the matters of wheat procurement through Passco, the premier formed a committee under the Ministry of National Food Security and Research to address farmers’ grievances in “four days” regarding selling their wheat and obtaining wheat bags.

According to a PM House statement, the federal government, through Passco, is procuring 1.8 million tonnes of wheat to ensure maximum benefit to farmers. The prime minister directed the officials concerned to personally monitor the wheat procurement process and ensure that farmers receive their due payments on time.

“The government will not compromise on the economic protection of farmers and will take all necessary steps to ensure their well-being,” the PM said and expressed his “delight” over the bumper wheat crop this year. The meeting was attended by federal ministers Attaullah Tarar and Rana Tanvir Hussain, and other relevant officials.

Published in Dawn, May 5th, 2024