LAHORE: Lahore Electric Supply Company’s (Lesco) has unearthed a scam of Rs100.8 million bill payment in Phool Nagar Division.
This was revealed by Lesco’s Board of Directors Chairman Mussadiq Malik Friday, while addressing a press conference. He said that electricity bills worth Rs 100.8 million were fraudulently marked as paid from August 2013 to July 2015.
He said the fraud was perpetrated at Phool Nagar Revenue Office and a large number of bills from all over Lahore were marked as paid every month at Pattoki branch of a bank in 19 transactions.
The chairman said that marking was done by improper usage of software provided by the Lesco to the banks for automation of bill collection. He said that two committees including a three member BOD committee probed the matter and unearthed the fraud.
Mussadiq Malik, who is also Special Assistant to Prime Minister, said that a case has been registered with the Federal Investigation Agency and revenue office staff was being investigated. He said that the officials involved in fraud would soon be suspended and all culprits would be taken to the task. A committee had also been constituted to ascertain as to why the record was not reconciled, he added.
He said that today, annual audited accounts of the company were presented before the board for approval but it was rejected as Rs 1.5 billion were not reconciled. He also revealed that last year, the Lesco was shown to achieve a fake profit of Rs 4.5 billion which was done by hiding the number of retired 1200 employees.
The chairman said that the Lesco BOD was committed to transform the institution and all steps would be taken for the purpose. He said that instead of hiding such scams, we would make it public so that people could be made custodian.
He said that the Lesco had managed to reduce its losses and its performance was getting better. A briefing would also be held in this regard in future and people would be apprised about steps and measures taken in this regard, he added.
To a question, he said that a forensic audit of Phool Nagar bank branches had been launched and help of external auditors would also be sought in this regard. To another question, he said the bills declared fraudulent had been reversed in the IT system and it was also made part of the investigations as to why bills were reversed without investigation.
