KARACHI: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the Sindh Assembly on Tuesday directed the chief secretary to form an inquiry committee to identify ghost employees in the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC).

The direction to this effect was given by PAC Chairman Nisar Ahmed Khuhro when it was revealed in the meeting that there was no biometric mechanism for the attendance of over 12,000 KMC employees.

Apprehending that millions of rupees were being spent monthly on ghost employees of KMC, the PAC sought the records of all KMC employees.

The meeting, held to review the audit reports of KMC from the year 2018 to 202, was also attended by committee members Khurram Soomro and Qasim Siraj Soomro, KMC Municipal Commissioner Afzal Zaidi and other officers.

There is no biometric mechanism for the attendance of over 12,000 KMC employees, meeting told

However, the KMC officials could not provide the data, service book, personal files and other details of all KMC employees and the details of KMC’s annual development programme for the year 2018.

When asked by Mr Khuhro, the municipal commissioner said that the KMC had over 12,000 employees whose attendance was checked only through the manual attendance register while the biometric system was not installed.

He said that the heads of KMC departments confirmed the attendance of the employees of their respective departments and there were no ghost employees.

Mr Khuhro said that ghost employees and the practice of taking salaries from home will not be tolerated in KMC under any circumstances.

Khurram Soomro said that there were many employees of the KMC who were working in two departments and many of them were on “visa” — a term used by the employees for not attending to office by greasing the palms of the officials in government departments.

He said that the data of KMC employees should be digitalized so that those working in government jobs at two places could be identified and strict action taken against them.

Mr Soomro said that even in the graveyards of Karachi, KMC ghost employees were involved in taking Rs 40,000 for a grave. However, the municipal commissioner said that the official fee slip per grave in Karachi cemeteries is only Rs300.

Published in Dawn, November 27th, 2024