LAHORE: The theft and embezzlement of confiscated goods in the customs warehouses by the customs staff is one of the biggest heads of money-making for the customs officers.
Sources told that such fraud and misappropriation of the warehoused goods continued unabated for years because FBR has not purposely introduced through law a requirement of regular audit of the customs warehouses.
When the complaints about this fraud started pouring in, the FBR took a measure which is tantamount to its circumventing the detection of embezzlement worth billions of rupees already committed in the customs warehouses across the country.
Instead of directing an audit of the customs warehouses across the country, the Federal Board of Revenue, on receiving complaints, has directed the customs field formations to devise new SOPs regarding the raids on private godowns and shifting of the goods seized from such godowns to the customs warehouses without issuing any direction for detection of the quantum of embezzlement already committed by the customs officers in the customs warehouses over the years.
Sources said that complaints have been received in the board that the customs field formations raid private godowns situated within the municipal limits of different cities during the wee hours in the absence of their owners and shift the the recovered and seized goods to the customs warehouses without making a proper inventory of the seized goods.
However, when the owners of private godowns present the import documents justifying the legal import of goods seized from their godowns, significantly fewer quantities and numbers are returned to the lawful owners of godowns, according to complaints.
Though the letter issued by FBR provides safeguards against pilferage of goods seized in private godowns and transported to customs warehouses, it does not say anything about such goods already embezzled by the customs staff during the course of shifting such goods to the customs warehouses.
The letter issued by FBR raises important questions on the opportunities for corruption available to customs staff and their making full use of those opportunities with impunity.
For instance, the letter of FBR is silent about the inexplicable inactions of the concerned collectors and chief collectors in the matter and their required accountability for their inactions resulting in the embezzlement of lawful owners’ goods by these senior officers’ subordinates.
