ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly Standing Committee on Ports and Shipping has directed the ministry to submit a comprehensive report on the issue of external audit of Karachi Port Trust (KPT). In February this year, the issue was brought to the notice of the committee that KPT’s financial management and arrangements had not been audited for the last five years.
This is the state of affairs despite the fact that the Karachi Port Trust Act, 1886 and amended in 2002 binds KPT to conduct external audit every year. Therefore, the NA committee formed a sub-committee under the supervision of Chaudhary Tariq Bashir Cheema to look into the matter and fix responsibility for transgression of law.
“The sub-committee will report back to main committee in one month time,” then committee Chairman Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah told this scribe. But, interestingly the said sub-committee has not presented its report so far despite passage of eight months.
The committee met here with Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah in the chair to have in-depth probe into the affairs of KPT inclusive of external audit issues, encroachment of land of KPT and employment of officers/officials on discretionary quota.
After detailed deliberations, committee formed a sub-committee under the convenorship of Mir Aijaz Hussain Jakhrani to further probe into the issues of encroachment of KPT land and employment of officers/officials on discretionary quota.
The Minister Ports and Shipping, Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo assured ministry’s full cooperation with the sub-committee saying that process of making an amendment in the law of KPT was in progress and with the passage of said amendments KPT would be bound to get external audit on yearly basis. The minister further added that the KPT would require the backing of the Standing Committee to get the KPT land vacated from encroachers and Land Mafia.
