The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Monday directed the defence secretary to ask army chief General Ashfaq Kayani to present the GHQ’s inquiry report on the National Logistic Cell (NLC) scam before the committee by June 30.
The committee met with Yasmeen Rehman in the chair in the absence of committee chairman Nisar Ali Khan. It expressed concerns over the delay in the completion of probe by the GHQ into the NLC scam. Gen Kayani had ordered a high-level inquiry in November last year after the multi-billion scam in NLC came to the limelight. A serving corps commander is heading the inquiry team that also includes two major generals. Earlier, audit officials told the Public Accounts Committee in 2010 that NLC had obtained Rs 4.3 billion in loan from banks between 2004 and 2008 for investment in volatile bourses, but suffered a Rs 1.84 billion loss.
The NLC director general had told PAC that the company was paying Rs 2.7 million per day on account of mark-up on loans illegally obtained to invest in the stock market. An interdepartmental committee of the Ministry of Finance, the Planning Commission and Auditor General of Pakistan had found three army generals and a senior civil official responsible for the losses. PAC member Zahid Hamid told the committee that the army chief had sought more time from Nisar Ali Khan for compiling the GHQ’s report on the NLC scam in his interaction with the PAC chairman at a social gathering. “But seven months have passed since and no report has been dispatched to PAC,” he added.
Upon it, the committee asked the COAS to present the inquiry report on NLC before PAC by June 30. Defence Secretary Lt Gen (r) Athar Ali Shah said that he would convey PAC’s message to Gen Kayani. While reviewing audit objections of the Ministry of Defence, the committee was informed by audit officials that the ministry had suffered a loss of Rs 140 million by purchasing land for establishing the New Islamabad Airport at an exorbitant price.
The audit authorities told the committee that the ministry had paid the amount and also issued certificates to owners without taking possession of the land. The committee directed the authorities to present a report on the matter by June 30. The audit official also said the total deficit of PIA had reached 96.57 billion.
