PM’s name falsely used in Rs60bn direct contracting attempt in PQA

ISLAMABAD: Transparency International Pakistan (TIP) has sought prime minister’s intervention in a blatant attempt by the Port Qasim Authority (PQA) to award Rs60 billion worth dredging contract through direct contracting, allegedly on the “false pretext” of an urgent directive from the PM.

In a formal letter addressed to the Adviser to the Prime Minister, TIP said it had received a complaint alleging that PQA and the recently formed National Dredging and Marine Services (NDMS) were preparing to hand over the country’s largest maritime dredging contract to a private company without competitive bidding, in violation of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) Rules 2004.

According to the complaint, NDMS which was created in July 2025 through a collaboration of PQA, Karachi Port Trust, Gwadar Port Authority and the National Logistics Corporation, was in the process of finalising a $200 million (Rs60 billion) dredging deal on a direct contracting basis. The move, the complainant alleges, is being justified by citing an “urgent directive” from the prime minister to expedite dredging in Port Qasim.

TIP, after reviewing the complaint, stated that prima facie the allegations appear correct. The watchdog noted that dredging at Port Qasim has already been pending for 17 years, despite PQA’s commitment in 2007 to deepen the channel to 14 metres. It said PQA had previously floated tenders in 2008, where the lowest bid stood at Rs10.7 billion but the process was inexplicably cancelled. After years of delay and inaction, the estimated cost has now ballooned to Rs60 billion.

The organisation warned that seeking an exemption from PPRA rules now appears to be an attempt to award the biggest maritime contract to a selected company at non-competitive rates, resulting in a massive loss to the public exchequer.

TIP also pointed out that the prime minister recently ordered an inquiry into the award of the Lyari Expressway contract without open tenders. It urged the government to constitute a similar inquiry committee to examine PQA’s move.

The watchdog further recommended holding accountable those responsible for blocking the award of the original lowest bid worth Rs10 billion nearly two decades ago, which has now led to a 600 percent increase in cost.

TIP has requested the prime minister to order PQA to invite open international tenders as required under PPRA Rules, arguing that such competition would help bring down costs. It has also sought an investigation into why PQA and NDMS attempted to bypass the tendering process, especially when the direct contracting approach would save only about 30 days compared to open bidding.