ISLAMABAD, Sept 6: A parliamentary committee described the Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco) on Tuesday as the most corrupt and inefficient entity which was harming the national economy.

A meeting of the National Assembly's standing committee on water and power presided over by its chairman Ghulam Mustafa Shah said the country was being dragged into economic woes by Pepco.

“While the nation is being pushed into darkness, officials of Pepco and other power distribution companies are enjoying lavish lifestyle,” MNA Muhammad Ijaz Virk said. He referred to a Transparency International report which said that staff of the companies had left police far behind in corruption.

Almost all members of the committee were of the opinion that the power sector was fleecing the masses. Abid Sher Ali, Anjum Aqeel Khan and Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao termed power distribution companies “white elephants” and mismanaged entities and said they should be exposed.

Abid Sher, an MNA from Faisalabad, said consumers of the Faisalabad Electricity Supply Company were paying their bills regularly and recovery there was around 90 per cent, but Pepco was charging them 20 per cent extra to offset losses it incurred in other parts of the country.

The committee chairman said Pepco officials had informed an earlier meeting that they were getting ample amount of electricity as and when required.

A number of MNAs alleged that officials of Pepco and distribution companies complained against the central distribution network whenever they were approached, but when in Islamabad they tried to protect each other.

Nawab Abdul Ghani Talpur said it was the third meeting of the committee and the Pepco managing director did not attend any of it and attacks on officials of electricity companies had become a routine matter.

“In remote parts of Sindh, people are asked by the Hyderabad Electricity Supply Company to get transformers repaired by their own as it has no budget for the purpose,” he said, adding: “People come to elected representatives while officials of electricity companies enjoy their lives.”

The committee members said that because of the apathy of officials the NA body had been rendered worthless and nothing had been done to minimise power outages.

Officials of the Peshawar Electric Supply Company and Quetta Electric Supply Company informed the committee that they were facing sever financial crisis because of lack of proper recovery and damage caused to the infrastructure.