PAC orders probe into $3bn soft loan grants by PTI govt

ISLAMABAD: The Public Accounts Committee on Wednesday handed over the matter of providing $3 billion in loans on favourable terms to 688 individuals during the PTI regime amidst the Covid-19 pandemic to the Auditor General of Pakistan, the Federal Investigation Authority (FIA), and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for a joint inquiry.

The committee instructed them to complete the investigation within 15 days.

During an in-camera meeting on Tuesday, there was strong resistance within the Public Accounts Committee against conducting the inquiry through the Auditor General of Pakistan, FIA, and NAB. However, on Wednesday, the committee decided to entrust the matter of providing $3 billion in loans on favourable terms to 688 individuals to the aforementioned entities.

The Public Accounts Committee convened a meeting under the chairmanship of Noor Alam Khan, where it discussed the issue of granting $3 billion in loans on favourable terms to 688 individuals. It also examined the audit report related to the interior ministry for the financial year 2019-20.

PAC Chairman Noor Alam Khan said that during Tuesday’s meeting, the State Bank of Pakistan had given a briefing on the issue of $3 billion in soft loans but failed to provide complete details of the borrowers, as their names were given without specifying the banks involved.

Noor Alam Khan mentioned that a final decision was not made during Tuesday’s meeting due to the absence of many committee members.

Committee member Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah proposed that the matter of loans be referred to the FIA or NAB.

The chairman said that the committee is not working for personal interests and will take action whenever public funds are misused.

Committee member Barjees Tahir expressed his support for handing over the matter to the FIA and NAB. He said that $3 billion amounts to Rs9,000 billion and that 628 individuals have looted the country, and it is essential to identify those who are undermining the economy.

He said that the banks collectively contributed to the decline in the Pakistani currency. “Eight banks played a major role in devaluing the Pakistani currency,” he remarked.

Committee member Afzal Khan Dhandla emphasised the need to ascertain if the loans were utilised for their intended purposes.

The chairman criticised the State Bank of Pakistan and finance ministry officials for providing misleading information to the PAC. He said that $3 billion is a significant amount for a poor country like Pakistan.

He said that the previous government had distributed dollars at low-interest rates among 620 individuals. He clarified that the committee does not have personal biases and urged the NAB chairman to investigate his own assets first.

Chairman Noor Alam Khan stressed the importance of presenting the facts, allowing the next government and assembly to identify influential individuals.

Meanwhile, Federal Religious Affairs Minister Anwar Talha Mehmood attended the PAC meeting and appeared dissatisfied with the chairman’s remarks regarding the difficulties faced by Pakistani pilgrims in Saudi Arabia during the last meeting.

The chairman asked: “Minister Sahib, how did you come today?”

Talha Mahmood replied that he came to hold the PAC chairman accountable. He criticised the chairman for deviating from audit objections and discussing unrelated matters.

Committee member Barjees Tahir suggested that they discuss the issue privately, as such discussions could be misinterpreted in the PAC forum. He mentioned the good relationship between the PAC chairman and the minister.

Noor Alam Khan responded to the federal minister’s anger and welcomed his participation in the PAC meeting. He said he has no personal issues with anyone and that any federal minister involved in wrongdoing will be investigated.

Additionally, the Public Accounts Committee took note of the years-long delay in purchasing arms for the FC Force, which have not been supplied. It directed an immediate inquiry into the matter.

The committee expressed concern over the non-supply of arms and instructed the interior and defence secretaries to investigate the issue promptly.

During the meeting, audit officials reported that FC Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had paid over Rs270 million to POF Factory, Wah, for the purchase of more than 3,000 Kalashnikovs for FC personnel deployed in troubled areas such as Swat and Malakand.

It was revealed that due to the increase in the dollar rate, an additional amount of over Rs7.2 million was demanded, but the arms and ammunition could not be supplied to the FC.

The IGFC informed the committee that according to the initial agreement, the POF was supposed to supply AK-47 Kalashnikov rifles to the FC, but later it was decided to import AK-103 Kalashnikovs from Russia. However, due to international sanctions on Russia, the import could not be carried out. As a result, it was decided to provide the FC with the CW-39 gun manufactured at POF, Wah.

Committee member Sheikh Rohail Asghar highlighted the importance of providing modern weapons to FC personnel who carry out their duties in dangerous conditions.

The chairman stressed the need to investigate the negligence in this case and hold the responsible parties accountable.

Addressing another audit matter, officials revealed that the profits earned by the FC Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from compensation received from national and multinational companies were not deposited with the national exchequer.

The committee learnt that 52 platoons of FC were assigned to provide security to national and multinational companies, and a profit of Rs10.74 million was generated from the salary payments received from these companies, which was not deposited with the exchequer.

The IGFC Khyber Pakhtunkhwa explained that the accounts for salary payments belonged to the respective companies, and the profits were paid to the companies themselves.

The PAC resolved the verified audit objection.

The PAC chairman inquired about the salaries of FC officials from the IGFC, who said that the current salary for an FC official is Rs40,000, an increase from Rs33,000 previously.

The chairman expressed concern that individuals would not risk their lives for a salary of Rs40,000. The PAC recommended increasing the salaries of FC and officials in other law enforcement agencies.

Noor Alam Khan asked the prime minister, defence, interior, and finance secretaries to consider raising the salaries of these officials.

The PAC also took note of the insufficient availability of weapons for law enforcement agencies.

The chairman said that after the martyrdom of an official, his wife and children become destitute, with no one to care for them. He stressed the importance of providing proper weapons to law enforcement officials.