ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) is investigating as many as 20 cases involving financial and administrative embezzlement with an approximate fraud’s size up to Rs 142.37 billion in monetary institutions of Pakistan, Customs Today has learnt.
The documents available revealed that NAB was probing mega corruption scams against prominent figures comprising financial misappropriations, land scams and abuse of position in various monetary linked ministries and institutions. In addition, the statistics disclosed that cases relating to administrative embezzlement which were being investigated by NAB mounted up to Rs 130.67 b, financial embezzlement up to Rs 5.971b and land-scams up to Rs 5.724b.
According to documents, amongst all cases, the most prominent was the probe against Finance Minister, Ishaq Dar. NAB’s investigations were under progress against the influential minister who was alleged of abusing authority as minister beyond means and embezzling over Rs. 23m, GB pounds 3.488 and US$ 1250m.
The list of financial scams also shows that NAB was probing a monetary fraud case of Rs 2.6b against officers/officials of Model Customs Collectorate, Lahore, importers and clearing agents. NAB was also probing a Rs 700m fraud case against Ghazi Akhter Khan and others from Tandianwala Sugar Mills, Rs 990m fraud case against officers/officials of PRC Sariab Road Quetta and others, Rs 524m fraud case against Zephyr Textile Mills filed by State bank of Pakistan (SBP) and five other cases filed by the SBP involving 1157m frauds.
The list mentions as many as six cases of administrative embezzlement by authorities of finance and revenue departments other than the case of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar. NAB’s inquiry was under progress against former Chairmen FBR Azhar Majeed Khalid, former Director PaCCs Ashir Azeem Gill, Additional Collector Customs and others causing US$ 11m loss to national exchequer; another probe was on against officers/officials of FBR and others for sanctioning illegal/inadmissible sales tax refunds on dubious, bogus and flying invoices causing Rs 2.5b loss. Investigations against Rai Talat Maqbool Ahmed (R) Commissioner In-Land Revenue (Zone-I), RTO-III and others were also under progress for causing Rs 223m loss to national exchequer by issuing fake sales tax refund. In another case, investigations were being progressed against Managing Director PTDC Mir Shah Jehan Khetran, GM Saeed Abbas Ansari, Manager Accounts Abdul Rasool Zahidi and others for misuse of authority in illegal appointments in PTDC involving Rs 22m frauds. Whereas, the amount of embezzlement was yet to be defined by NAB in cases against former Minister for Industries and Commerce, Ihsan Shah, and Ahsan Ullah Khan and officers/officials of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Revenue Department for misuse of authority in illegal appointment and promotions.
As mentioned in the NAB report about land-scams – the bureau was probing illegal allotment of state’s land involving Rs 200m fraud against former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Revenue, Syed Murid Kazim and others, NAB probe was also underway against Additional AEDO Revenue Department, Mustafa Jamal Kazi and former Secretary Land Utilization Department, Shahzar Shamoon involving Rs 5b fraud. In another land-scam of Rs 524m fraud was being investigated by NAB against former Secretary Labour Sindh, Naser Hayat and eight others.
It is pertinent to mention that NAB yet had also to determine the amount of embezzlement in a financial fraud case against former Baluchistan Minister of Industries, Mir Abdul Ghafoor Lehri.
