REFERENCE / COMPLAINT NO. V
Reference dated 6-8-2002 – Misuse of Secret Funds – Ministry of Information
August 6, 2002
Lieutenant
General Munir Hafeez
Chairman
National Accountability Bureau
Chief Executive Secretariat
Islamabad
Dear General Munir Hafeez
On behalf of Pakistan
Peoples Party (PPP) I am filing a corruption complaint for the misuse of
funds for the Ministry of Information in the use of secret service funds. I
bring to your notice a news item published in THE NEWS on 28 July 2002 by
Rauf Klasra (copy of news clipping enclosed ) that confirm the said abuse
of office by the Secretary Information before the PAC.
The Pakistan Peoples
Party (PPP) is highly concerned that rampant corruption is taking place
under the present military regime. A series of complaints by us over three
years have been ignored. Shockingly one hundred million dollars belonging to
the working class employees was stolen from the Ministry of Labour. I refer
to the Pension funds in the EOBI. Now the diversion of funds under use of
secret funds by the Ministry is evidence of bribery and corruption by the
state to get distorted stories printed against its political rivals. The
Nation has a right to know the names of the journalists who received the
sums and the articles that they wrote in that connection.
Governments do hire
press people as consultants and pay them openly and transparently so that
there is a legality. The secret payment of funds is odious and it smells of
corruption. It is the job of the NAB to avoid abusing its own office by
investigating cases of corruption honestly. I am afraid NAB is still to rise
above an institution more than a politically motivated vehicle to attain
political objectives of regimes that lack popular support.
The Pakistan Peoples
Party is of the view that after the publication of the report the National
Accountability Bureau should have taken suo moto notice to investigate
government’s efforts to hire journalists. The public has the right to know
which news items are published on behalf of the government and which
journalists are paid out of Ministry of Information secret funds. They
cannot be denied the information on the basis of secrecy about the
utilization of public funds.
It is hoped that NAB
under your leadership would investigate the matter regarding doling out huge
sums of money to the journalists, writers and columnists and the outcome of
the investigation will be made public.
As a serving military
officer, you, General Munir, can change the culture. It may be a difficult
job to do so. It may require courage and integrity. I pray that Allah may
bless you with these qualities so that you can respond to the aspirations of
the people of the country and make a mark with acts of truth, courage and
valour. This is what is needed and its time all Pakistanis stopped cowering
under illegal orders by a corrupt mafia bent on destroying the Constitution
for its own personal advancement.
Sincerely,
Nayyer Bokhari, Advocate
On behalf of Pakistan Peoples Party
The
Reference / Complaint is based on the source incorporated as under :
Existence of secret fund
in Information Ministry Admitted
THE NEWS dated 28 July,
2002
By Rauf Klasra
ISLAMABAD: The government for the first time officially confirmed to the Public
Accounts Committee (PAC) on Saturday that a 'secret fund' exits in the Ministry
of Information to dole out heavy amounts to different writers, columnists,
journalists and others to conduct 'research' where needed and write in favour of
government policies.
It was also confirmed to the PAC that a sum of Rs15million given by the exiled
premier Nawaz Sharif to the Islamabad Policy Research was actually deposited in
the 'secret fund' by the then bosses of the Information Ministry for the purpose
of distribution among its favourites journalists. The Ministry however refused
to get the big amount audited on the pretext that the 'secret fund' could not be
audited by any agency.
Earlier, the Public Accounts Committee took up the audit reports of the Ministry
of Information with regard to payments to journalists from the secret fund,
establishment of workers welfare fund and other issues pertaining to PTV.
PAC
chairman HU Beg, presided the committee meeting, which was attended by General
Talat Masoud, Shaukat Kazmi, Akmul Ahad and Muzaffar Ahmad.
Mohammad Younis Khan, Auditor General of Pakistan, and Finance Ministry Joint
Secretary Nasrul Aziz also attended the meeting.
Anwar
Mahmood, Secretary Information, and MD PTV Mirza Yousaf Beg were in the meeting
to defend the expenditures in their ministry and corporation.
A long
debate ensued in the PAC when it was pointed out by the audit that the
Information Ministry had refused to provide details of Rs15million given to it
for the establishment of IPRI but diverted into the Information Ministry 'secret
fund'.
The PAC
also took a serious note of payment of Rs25million to some influential people by
the Information Ministry in the name of honouring those associated with the
Pakistan Freedom Movement without laying down any rules and procedure. Till
date, no one knows the fate of the money that was not deposited in a
nationalised bank as per the government policy.
The audit said that it does not know the use of the fund and it asked the PAC to
direct the Ministry of Information to arrange the required documents so that a
proper audit could be conducted to determine whether the money was utilised
accordingly or not.
Mr. Beg
said anyone who utilises the government money must give details of expenditures
and no one should take cover behind any excuse.
General Talat said there was a strong possibility that the funds might have been
utilised somewhere else and now the Information Ministry is not divulging
information under one pretext or the other. He wondered how could one NGO or
trust be given so much money for the old workers of Pakistan movement and how
could one determine that they were the genuine people who had participated in
the Pakistan Movement. Shaukat Kazmi said it was a serious issue and no lame
excuse should be entertained.
Anwar
Mahmood however tried to defend dolling out of Rs25million.
The PAC
directed the Ministry of information to collect al the required information from
the concerned trust and its members and hand over the same for their audit.
Earlier, a long debate took place on the issue of audit of secret funds and the
money given to journalists by the Ministry of Information to arrange pro
government coverage in newspapers. The Secretary Information maintained that if
the Audit was allowed to have an access to the documents of this fund, it would
create problems and so they should not be authorised to do so. But, the Audit
was of the view that when the amount was released for Islamabad Policy Research
institute by the Ministry of Finance, it was never stated that it was meant for
a secret fund. However, when the cheque was issued it was deposited by the
Information Ministry in the secret account.
General
Talat said he failed to understand what kind of secrecy it is to keep the public
in the dark with regard to the use of public money. He said if the government
had paid certain amounts to some journalist or columnists or researchers for the
promotion of its policies, why the information ministry does not come up with
any justification for the use of money in question.
However
after all the arguments and counter arguments, the ever wavering PAC, the
vulnerable audit officials and intelligent Information Ministry found a middle
way to keep the taxpayers in the dark from knowing the use of their money by
agreeing to keep alive the tradition of use of secret funds in the best
"national interests". They all decided that the audit of secret fund will be
done by the Auditor General of Pakistan under the law governing the rules of
audit of secret funds.
And the
report would not be made public, neither submitted to the PAC for debate nor the
names of those people will be exposed who were reportedly paid from the
government fund to write in favour of the government of the day.
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