PESHAWAR: National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in KPK has arrested Aizazur Rehman, former chairman of Workers Welfare Board (WWB), Muhammad Ibrar Hussain director finance (BPS-19) of the board, Muhammad Imran Wazir former director finance (BPS-19), presently working as Director Finance Provincial Housing Authority (PHA) KPK, Muhammad Akbar Awan, owner of M/s Ashraf Enterprises and Irfan Qureshi were allegedly involved in illegal award of contracts for the procurement of equipment e.g., generators, vacuum cleaners, first aid boxes, fans, fiber glass rooms, etc. through fake and non-registered firms at exorbitant rates and paid more than Rs 3.5 billion, causing losses to state exchequer.
During the course of investigations, it was discovered that accused Aizazur Rehman, also labour secretary, delegated all his administrative and financial powers to the prime suspect Tariq Awan, the then WWB Secretary, thus illegally handing him over all affairs of the board. He, in connivance with other suspects, opened a secret bank account and used it for their illegal activities. All the illegal payments to the un-registered and fake supply firms were made through this account.
Similarly, Imran Khan and Muhammad Abrar, both remained director finance of the WWB, and working in connivance with other suspects, issued cheques for payments to the fraudulent contractors without any due diligence thus willfully failed to exercise their authority in order to prevent loss to national exchequer.
Arsalan Qureshi and Muhammad Akbar Awan, illegally secured contracts of equipment on exorbitant rates, through active connivance of the WWB officials.
Some of the firms were unregistered and were without any prior experience of supply to any government department. While most of the firms were fake and did not have any physical existence. These contractors were hand in gloves with the suspects in causing huge losses to the government exchequer.
It merits to mention here that several suspects, including Tariq Awan, Secretary WWB, have already been apprehended by National Accountability Bureau .
National Accountability Bureau is actively pursuing the case and more alarming facts are expected to come up. The accused persons were presented before the Accountability Court and 12 days physical remand was granted to NAB.
