Naseem Sadiq believes mafia involved in fake wheat export got him indicted

ISLAMABAD: Apart from raising question on the competence and intentions of the members of inquiry committee on wheat/flour crisis, former Secretary Food Naseem Sadiq claimed the mafia who was getting rebate on wheat export, which was never sent abroad but only on papers, got him transferred from the post of secretary food.

Former Food Secretary Punjab Naseem Sadiq has submitted his detailed reply to Chief Secretary in response to the allegations leveled against him in the wheat/flour crisis inquiry report. Mr Sadiq has raised serious questions not only on the system but also pointed out flaws in the report, which, according to him, has been done deliberately to deflect the flour crisis to wheat procurement to save the nexus of the mafia and their benefactors in Punjab.

According to him, some malpractices of sinister nature came into his knowledge as a food secretary, which he reported to his higher-ups. However, this reportage of the crime resulted in his transfer from the post of food secretary. The same mafia has managed to get him indicted through this report as, according to Mr Sadiq, a smokescreen has been created to give benefit to the mafia involved in the flour crisis (The actual crisis).

Mr Sadiq, in his detailed response, has also highlighted an important matter and raised questions who released the wheat stock and how the flourmills were awarded quota, which was not proportionate to the population of their districts. Instead of tracing the audit trail of a crime purported in the broad day light, the committee conveniently "contended and confined itself" to an area, which proved source of strategic strength.

“Interestingly, soon after the closure of wheat procurement campaign 2019-20, certain malpractices of very sinister nature came into my knowledge which were duly brought into knowledge of higher up (Annex-M). Directions to attend audit paras that ran into thousands, coupled with unearthing of the rebate on export of wheat, which was never exported but on papers as no money trail in foreign exchange/USD through banking channels could be traced, was something that triggered my sudden transfer. Whenever a secretary tries to figure out these criminal "unchartered waters", he would meet the same fate as the continual disruption in the normal business of governance creates environment conducive to such mafia to exploit situation in one way and when that avenue is closed to resurface in another form. That is why and that is how we see scam after scam with no credible deterrence for these unscrupulous elements in an institutionalised way”, said Mr Sadiq in his detailed reply.

Explaining the reason of flour crisis in the country the former food secretary says, “The crisis of flour was to be deliberately confused with wheat to provide leeway to the mafia to go scot-free as the crisis was that of the availability of flour and not of the wheat at the 'doorsteps' of the Food Department, Punjab. This is further augmented by the fact that the Food Department, Punjab started releasing wheat right from August 2019, which was followed by continuous unprecedented releases, possible obviously if they had enough wheat stock with them. The quota of flourmills was also not in proportion to the populations of those respective districts and here the punch line lies. Instead of tracing the audit trail of a crime purported in the broad day light, the Committee conveniently "contended and confined itself" to an area, which proved source of strategic strength even after having enjoyed malpractices by the mafia in the form of smuggling of wheat procured from the Food Department, Punjab, on government controlled rates, on the pretext of grinding through skyrocketed releases to districts in the Punjab disproportionate to their population. Another premise relied in the report that all provinces depend on Punjab government is itself rebutted by report when it highlighted the failures of KP, Sindh and Balochistan governments to lift allocated stocks from Passco that ensured "maintenance" of the flour crisis. That is why the committee surreptitiously moved away from mentioning the status of stock of wheat and the flour available with the flourmills in the Punjab when they were released the wheat form Food Department, Punjab in huge quantities. The truth is not hard to reach at through the prejudice and deliberate connivance, employed to save the skin of the mafia involved in this heinous crime”.

According to former food secretary, the inquiry committee members had ulterior motives and they also lacked the competence to understand the technical issues related to wheat procurement operations.

“The para 41 of the Supplementary Report admits the soaring issue of huge circular debt in the Punjab and Sindh etc., which was the chief reason of export of wheat in the past before my becoming Secretary Food. How come the vicious cycle that was hurting the public interest and had to be broken at that time, should have become preferred option now as suggested by the report whereas at another place, the same report contradicts this postulation (Para 74 (b)(vi), Page 23) and recommends `addressing the issue of debt accumulation as currently the debt incurred by Punjab is more than Rs322 billion! This speaks volume about the ulterior motives behind the report and the competency level of committee members to undertake such a technical endeavour”, said Mr Sadiq.

“It must be noted here that procurement and export of wheat by the public sector works as double jeopardy for the public exchequer. The wheat is procured on support price for which loans from commercial banks are obtained on mark-up. Support price is given as market price is less than the production price and holding capacity of growers does not exist. However, in case of bumper crop, the stocks pile up undesirably and their retirement through export is also subsidised as the international price is less than the support price given to the growers. This was the reforms area where World Bank funded SMART programme envisaged substantive reduction of unnecessary public procurements. The observations of Finance Department, Punjab are worth noting here”, said Mr Sadiq in his detailed response to Chief Secretary, Punjab.

According to him, "Finance Department observed in the first week of April 2019 that purchase of 4 MMT of wheat shall increase the financial implication by approximately Rs32.5 billion. This in turn will increase mark-up liability on government of the Punjab, which already stands accumulated at around Rs200 billion as these wheat operations are run on commodity financing through commercial banks. Moreover, since under DLI-4(a) of the World Bank funded SMART programme, the procurement target of this year was to be capped at 3 MMT, non-compliance of the same shall also result in non-disbursement of $10 million to government of the Punjab. This will be a financial blow to the government even if the funding agency i.e. World Bank, agrees to postpone the schedule for reduction in procurement target by one year. That is how, coupled with other factors like crop failure, yet satisfactory payments to growers through wheat procurement operations, the Punjab Cabinet after having received the information of procurement of 3 MMMT by 23.05.2019 (Annex-C) decided to discontinue administrative push for rest of the wheat procurement. The committee was duly sensitised with all these aspects with documentary evidence and detailed presentation, but it preferred to skip that from its report.”

The fixation of responsibility of wheat crisis according to Naseem Sadiq is the backlash in the form of prejudice expressed in the instant reports which needs to be investigated by competent forum of law. He claims that two members of the inquiry committee including Deputy Director General Intelligence Bureau (IB) Mubarak Zeb had personal grudge with him.

“This factually incorrect information has been intentionally inserted in the report to deceive the Prime Minister of Pakistan, by deliberately building 'a false case of some imaginary so-called failure of Punjab government in wheat procurement so that mafia behind flour crisis could go scot-free”, says Naseem Sadiq.

“After having dealt with this factually wrong and highly misleading report purely on merit, for which detailed reply on each of the word written, can be produced as I have just touched the tip of the iceberg, I want to bring into your kind notice a highly disturbing personal experience that incurred me the wrath of two of the committee members: Deputy Director General of IB, in particular. During my posting as Commissioner, D G Khan, I allotted a designated earmarked residence to honourable Judge of Special Court Anti-Corruption (Annex-N), which was under illegal possession of a Director of IB who had been transferred from there. I was pressurised to the highest possible level even through combined efforts of certain 'allied forces' as well so much so the said member of the inquiry committee to my utter shock and dismay demanded me to withdraw the said allotment order, "mujhy allotment cancellation order subah tak chaheye", right after the proceedings of the committee the day I shared/submitted facts, figures, statement, documents/material with the committee members, in the instant inquiry, which I obviously had to refuse, being against the law/rules and professional ethics. The backlash in the form of prejudice expressed in the instant reports was but axiomatic, which needs to be investigated by competent forum of law. For another member of the inquiry committee whom I did not spare for certain irresponsibility in the past is also part of the history, known to many,” said Naseem Sadiq.